Zeppelin

Zeppelin was one of the capoeiristas who participated in the historic demonstration of capoeira de Angola at the II Congresso Afro-Brasileiro held in Salvador on January 14, 1937. This landmark event, organized by folklorist Edison Carneiro and writer Aydano de Couto Ferraz, brought together intellectuals, researchers, and practitioners of Afro-Brazilian culture for what became a pivotal moment in the documentation and legitimization of capoeira.

The demonstration took place at the basketball court of Club de Regatas Itapagipe in the Ribeira neighborhood. Samuel "Querido de Deus", considered by his peers as the best capoeirista in Bahia, directed the exhibition. The newspaper Estado da Bahia described the participants in the "vadiação" as including Barbosa, Onça Preta, Juvenal, Zeppelin, Bugaia, Fernandes, Eutíquio, Neném, Zei, Ambrósio, Barroso, Arthur Mattos, Raphael, Edgar, Damião, and other practitioners of "the great art of Mangangá".

Zeppelin's significance extends beyond his participation in this single event. Edison Carneiro included him as one of the key informants on capoeira de Angola in his groundbreaking book "Negros Bantus" (1937), which contains the first in-depth scholarly study of capoeira. In the preface, Carneiro acknowledged the "most efficient assistance" he received from "Samuel 'Querido de Deus,' Barbosa and Zeppelin, regarding capoeira de Angola". That Zeppelin's name appears alongside these two giants of early capoeira suggests he held considerable standing in the community of practitioners.

The II Congresso Afro-Brasileiro marked a turning point in how Brazilian intellectuals and the government viewed capoeira. Following the demonstrations by Querido de Deus, Zeppelin, and their companions, ethnographer Edison Carneiro and novelist Jorge Amado advocated for the creation of a federation of capoeiristas. This advocacy helped shift capoeira's image from a criminalized street practice to a recognized cultural tradition worthy of preservation and study.

Little else is known about Zeppelin's personal life. His apelido (nickname), which evokes the famous German airships of the era, suggests he may have acquired the name during the 1920s-1930s when zeppelins captured the public imagination. His real name, occupation, teachers, and the details of his life before and after 1937 remain undocumented.

What is certain is that Zeppelin belonged to the generation of angoleiros who practiced capoeira before the formal academy system emerged—before Pastinha's Centro Esportivo de Capoeira Angola (1941) and even before Bimba's Regional systematization gained widespread acceptance. These were the capoeiristas who learned in the streets, at dock areas, during festivals, and in the informal rodas that characterized pre-institutional capoeira.