Hello,
This week, to celebrate the launch of my latest wordy download “Words People and Places Gave Us” (it’s a free pdf, why not check it out?), I’m sharing the story of who put the Martens into Doc Martens boots and shoes.
I’ve been wearing these boots for more than 30 years (although the scruffy ones pictured are my daughter’s) and always wondered if there was a real doctor behind the story. I was particularly delighted to find they were first adopted by mature German women – thus giving me permission to wear them into my eighties!
Extract from “Words People and Places Gave Us” by Grace Tierney
{copyright Grace Tierney 2024}
Doc Martens
These boots were made for walking, as the song goes. Doc Martens boots entered English in 1977 (or possibly a little earlier) thanks to a trademark taken out by Herbert Funck and Klaus Martens of West Germany.
Klaus Marten (or Martens) was a doctor in the German Army during World War II. In 1945, Klaus, aged 25, returned to Madrid with an injured foot.
With the help of Dr. Herbert Funch, an old friend from his university days, Klaus created boots that were more comfortable and practical with an air-cushioned rather than a traditional leather sole.
They used old military supplies to move the shoe into production and within a decade, became a booming business whose main customers were women over the age of 40 who wanted comfortable footwear.
The rights to the boots were sold in 1959 to R. Griggs Group, a British shoe manufacturer, who added features, including the iconic yellow stitching. In Britain the boots were sold as work-boots and by the 1960s they were picked up by younger wearers and various subcultures, cementing their image as a rebellious fashion boot.
The company expanded and went through changes but in 2021 Doc Martens were listed on the London Stock Exchange for £3.7 billion in value. A long way from a post-war product made with military surplus.
{end of extract}
I hope you enjoyed that extract from “Words People and Places Gave Us”. You might like the other 56 eponyms and toponyms included. If you want even more words then check out “How to Get Your Name in the Dictionary”, my earlier book on the subject, all the ways to get it are listed here.
Until next time happy reading, writing, and wordfooling,
Grace (@Wordfoolery)
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