Mondo Knows Facts
British and American shoe sizes are based on barleycorn lengths
Shoe size increments historically equal one-third of an inch per size step
Traditional British shoe sizing originates from an order issued by King Edward II in 1324 declaring three dry barleycorn grains placed end-to-end equal to one inch. Each full shoe size increment in the UK and US system corresponds to one barleycorn, or exactly one-third of an inch.
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Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.
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Tags: footwear, measurement, history
British and American shoe sizes are based on barleycorn lengths: the short answers
- Where does this come from, and can I check it?
- Shoe size increments historically equal one-third of an inch per size step. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
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