What is the origin of the word 'Blimp'? Wasn't it originally called a dirigible?
by 
Ed the Jetpacking Headbanger
ANSWERS: 3
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Yep . . . I believe that is exactly what it was called. I don't know who named it a "blimp."
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Yep. It sure was called a dirigible. Before that we had the Graf Zeppelin. So who came up with dirigible???
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Apparently the world blimp is onomatopoetic, and comes from the sound that it makes when you tap it with your fingers. Credit cannot be proven, but is usually given to Lt. A.D. Conningham of the British Royal Navy in 1915. (Thank you Wikipedia...) . A blimp, a dirigible and a Zeppelin are three similar, but different things. While all three are a dirigible (a lighter-than-air craft that can be steered and propelled through the air), a blimp is a non-rigid airship and a Zeppelin is a rigid airship. A rigid ship requires structure inside to keep it's shape...a non-rigid ship does not.
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