Sweet As Tees › NZ Slang › Jandals

Jandals — Meaning in NZ Slang

Jandals: Flip flops — New Zealand's unofficial national footwear. Pronunciation: JAN-dulls.

What does "Jandals" mean?

Jandals are what New Zealanders call flip flops (or "thongs" if you're Australian — a word guaranteed to make a Kiwi smirk). They're the closest thing NZ has to national footwear: worn to the beach, the dairy, the barbie, and — controversially — sometimes to weddings.

The word is pure Kiwi invention: "Japanese sandals" squeezed into one word in the 1950s. Since then jandals have become cultural shorthand for the NZ summer — the smell of sunscreen, the sound of them slapping on a footpath, the annual tragedy of a blowout (when the plug pulls through the sole) miles from home.

Rules of jandal culture: everyone owns at least one pair, the cheap ones from the dairy are as legitimate as the fancy ones, and losing one at the beach is a rite of passage. If it's above 15 degrees, jandals are acceptable footwear for almost any occasion in New Zealand.

Origin

"Jandals" is a Kiwi portmanteau of "Japanese sandals", coined in New Zealand in the 1950s when the rubber thong-style sandal — inspired by the Japanese zōri — was first commercialised here. The name stuck so hard that most Kiwis are genuinely surprised to learn the rest of the world doesn't use it.

Examples

• "Have you seen my jandals?" "Which pair, you own six."
• "Blew out my jandal halfway up the hill — had to hop home."
• "Dress code?" "Casual as. Jandals are fine."
• "First day of spring, jandals are officially back on."

FAQs

What are jandals in New Zealand?

Jandals are flip flops — rubber sandals with a strap between the toes. The word comes from "Japanese sandals" and has been used in NZ since the 1950s. They're practically the national footwear.

Why do Kiwis say jandals instead of flip flops or thongs?

The word was coined in New Zealand in the 1950s as a portmanteau of "Japanese sandals", inspired by the Japanese zōri. It became the standard NZ term and never left.

What's a jandal blowout?

When the rubber plug pulls through the sole and the jandal falls apart mid-step — a genuine Kiwi summer tragedy, usually happening as far from home as possible.

Related NZ slang: Togs | Bach | Dairy | Sweet as

Full NZ Slang Dictionary | Shop Kiwi Slang T-Shirts