Over the weekend, we got into a discussion: why are bullpup rifles called “bullpups”?
As best as I’ve been able to tell (and applying the standard Wikipedia discount) the answer is: nobody knows for sure. There’s one guy that’s found evidence that they were named that because they remind people of bulldog puppies (and “bullpup” is an archaic term for bulldog puppies): “squat, ugly but still aggressive and powerful”.
(I don’t have a copy of Thorneycroft to SA80: British Bullpup Firearms, 1901 – 2020. I think Headstamp Publishing is doing the Lord’s work, but when it comes to British bullpups and a lot of their other stuff…I’m not made of money, and while I am interested in bullpups, I’m not $98 worth of interested.)
You make the call.
One thing I didn’t know is that the Steyr AUG is considered the first successful bullpup. It was adopted by Austria, and is still in use today (in an upgraded version). And there’s supposedly a .300 Blackout version coming. (The standard chambering is 5.56 NATO.)
While I admit the AUG is an interesting, innovative, and apparently well received design, I just personally don’t like the esthetics of it. I think I’m just not a big fan of bullpup rifles in general, as I don’t want all that commotion going on so close to my face. But there are other people I know who are fans. Especially since most bullpups seem to be set up for easy conversion for left-handed shooters.
Some folks might recognize the Steyr AUG from various movies. Perhaps the most famous fictional user…
Because it’s just not Christmas until I see Hans Gruber fall from the Nakatomi Tower.
I was $98 interested, if you have any questions I’ll look them up for you!
What got me to pay for the book was a long time curiosity about the EM-1 and EM-2 rifles and the associated .280 British.
And that came from seeing pictures of the L85 and L86 after playing Twilight: 2000.
Thank you, McThag. I appreciate the offer. (And I can understand being $98 interested: while I’m not at that level with bullpups, I’m certainly willing to spend that kind of money on S&W revolvers or pre-64 Model 70s.)
The biggest question I have is: does the bullpup book talk at all about the etymology of “bullpup” as a term for this kind of rifle? Does it go with the explanation that they resemble bull dog puppies?