of shoes, etc., by 1970, from strap (n.) + -y (2).
Entries linking to strappy
strap n.
1610s, "band of leather," from Scottish and/or nautical variant of strope "loop or strap on a harness" (mid-14c.), probably from Old French estrop "strap," from Latin stroppus "strap, band," perhaps via Etruscan, ultimately from Greek strophos "twisted band; a cord, rope," from strephein "to turn" (from PIE root *streb(h)- "to wind, turn"). Old English stropp, Dutch strop "halter" also are borrowed from Latin, and the Old English word might be the source of the modern one. Slang meaning "credit" is from 1828.
-y 2
adjective suffix, "full of or characterized by," from Old English -ig, from Proto-Germanic *-iga- (source also of Dutch, Danish, German -ig, Gothic -egs), from PIE -(i)ko-, adjectival suffix, cognate with elements in Greek -ikos, Latin -icus (see -ic). Originally added to nouns in Old English; used from 13c. with verbs, and by 15c. even with other adjectives (for example crispy). Adjectives such as hugy, vasty are artificial words that exist for the sake of poetical metrics.