Foot binding

Long ago in China, some girls had small feet.

People used silk cloth to tie them. They called these tiny feet "lotus feet."

This was done to show beauty. It was also a sign of wealth.

But this was a very hard thing to do. It caused a lot of pain. It made it much harder to walk.

Some women could not move well.

Many people wanted to stop this. They thought it was bad for health. Soon, the practice began to end. Now, girls can walk and run freely.

For a long time in China, some women had very small feet.

This was done through a custom called foot binding. Girls had their feet wrapped tightly in silk.

People called these small feet "lotus feet." They also made special shoes called lotus shoes.

In the past, many people thought these feet were beautiful. Having small feet showed that a family was wealthy. It could even help a woman find a husband. Some women felt great pride in their tiny feet. They wore shoes with lovely silk patterns.

These shoes showed how well a woman could sew.

However, the practice was very painful. It changed the shape of the bones. It made it hard for many women to walk or move.

Some women could only move with help.

Many people worked to stop the custom. Some Chinese leaders and teachers thought it was bad for health. Other groups also asked for it to end. By the early 1900s, the practice began to die out. Today, very few people remember having bound feet.

In parts of China for many centuries, women practiced a custom called foot binding. This practice changed the shape and size of a girl's feet. People called these small, altered feet "lotus feet."

To cover them, women wore beautiful, tiny shoes known as lotus shoes. For many families, having small feet was a sign of status. It showed that a woman did not need to work in the fields. In some places, it even helped women find a husband. While it was a symbol of beauty, it was also very painful. It often caused lifelong disabilities and made it hard to move around.

To create lotus feet, the feet were wrapped very tightly in silk. This process changed the actual shape of the bones.

The goal was to reach an ideal size called the "Golden Lotus." This was about three Chinese inches long, or roughly 7.5 centimeters.

Women wore elegantly embroidered silk slippers to show off their feet. These handmade shoes also showed how skilled a woman was at sewing. Some women needed the support of these shoes just to walk. Even though it was hard, some women still performed dances.

Others even worked in rice fields, though they could not move as easily as others.

Stories tell us how this custom might have started. One story mentions a dancer named Pan Yunu. She danced barefoot on a floor with golden lotus designs. Another account involves Emperor Li Yu in the 10th century. He asked a woman named Yao Niang to bind her feet in white silk. She shaped them like a crescent moon and danced on a lotus.

Her graceful dance made other women want to try it too. This helped the practice spread among wealthy women. Over time, it moved from the upper class to many other groups. By the Ming period, it was no longer just for the elite.

Foot binding changed a lot over the years. In the 13th century, archaeologists found that women's feet were already bound.

The style back then was different from the later "three-inch" version. By the 19th century, about 40 to 50 percent of Chinese women had bound feet. Among wealthy Han Chinese women, that number was almost 100 percent.

Not everyone did it, though. Groups like the Mongols and Tibetans did not practice foot binding. Even Manchu emperors tried to ban it in the 1600s, but they failed. It took much longer for the custom to truly go away.

Eventually, many people worked together to end the practice. In the late 1800s, Christian missionaries and Chinese reformers began to speak out.

They formed groups like the Natural Foot Society to teach others. In 1883, Kang Youwei started the Anti-footbinding Society. He believed that stopping the custom would help China's health and strength.

Many people joined this movement, with some groups reaching 300,000 members. By the early 20th century, the practice finally began to die out. Today, only a very few elderly women still live who once had bound feet.

Foot binding was a long-standing Chinese custom that physically altered the shape and size of young girls' feet.

Through this process, feet were transformed into what were called "lotus feet."

Women wore tiny, decorated slippers called "lotus shoes" to cover these feet.

In late imperial China, having bound feet served as a major status symbol. It was widely viewed as a mark of feminine beauty and elegance. However, the practice was also a source of significant physical hardship. It caused intense pain and often resulted in lifelong mobility issues for women.

The mechanism of foot binding involved tightly wrapping the feet in silk bandages.

This constant, heavy pressure worked to change the actual structure of the bones.

The goal was to achieve a specific, highly prized shape and size. The ideal measurement was known as the "Golden Lotus." This size was approximately three Chinese inches, or about 7.5 centimeters, in length.

Because the bones were reshaped, many women required the support of their shoes to walk. The process was physically demanding and changed how a person moved through the world.

Different styles of foot binding existed throughout history. The earliest archaeological evidence comes from the 13th century.

Remains from the tombs of Huang Sheng and Madame Zhou show feet bound with gauze strips. These Song dynasty feet were different from later versions because the big toe was bent upwards. By the 16th century, a more severe form of binding began to develop. This led to the famous "three-inch golden lotus" style seen in later eras. The practice also influenced social customs, such as the "toast to the golden lotus." In this tradition, men would sometimes drink from the heel of a shoe.

Historians trace the origins of the practice to the 10th-century China. One popular legend involves a dancer named Pan Yunu, who performed on a golden lotus design. Another account credits Emperor Li Yu of the Southern Tang. He reportedly asked his concubine, Yao Niang, to bind her feet in white silk. She shaped them like a crescent moon and performed a graceful dance.

This performance was so admired that other upper-class women began to imitate her. Consequently, the custom spread from the imperial courts to the wider elite classes.

The prevalence of foot binding varied greatly by social class and region. By the 19th century, it is estimated that 40–50% of all Chinese women had bound feet. Among upper-class Han Chinese women, the rate was nearly 100%.

However, the practice was not universal across all ethnic groups. Frontier groups like the Mongols, Tibetans, and Manchus generally did not practice it. Interestingly, Manchu influence sometimes helped decrease the practice among nearby Han Chinese. In contrast, Han culture sometimes spread the custom to non-Han women in certain regions.

As the practice grew, it had a noticeable impact on Chinese culture and labor. Because binding restricted movement, the art of women's dance began to decline after the Song era. It became much rarer to find women who were both beautiful and skilled dancers. Despite these limitations, some women remained active in society. Some performers even participated in circuses, standing on running horses. In rural areas, many women continued to assist in rice fields, though they moved with less ease than others. The practice was deeply tied to marriage prospects and family status.

The decline of foot binding was driven by both internal and external forces. In the late 19th century, Christian missionaries began to campaign against the practice.

They formed groups like the Natural Foot Society to advocate for change. At the same time, Chinese reformers like Kang Youwei organized their own movements.

His Anti-footbinding Society claimed a membership of up to 300,000 people. These reformers argued that ending the practice would improve national health and efficiency. By the early 20th century, these combined efforts caused the custom to finally fade away.