The Crowther Surname Y-DNA project seeks to discover the genetic origins of the Crowther surname using Y- chromosome analysis to trace the male lineage of the family’s British Isles ancestry.  This project includes variations in the spellings of the Crowther surname including Crowthers, Crother, and Crouther.

According to A Dictionary of English Surnames, by P.H. Reaney, Crowther is a derivative of Middle English crouth, croude – ‘fiddle’, a fiddler. The Editors of the Encyclopæda Britannica define the Middle English crouthas a “crwth, bowed Welsh lyre played from the European Middle Ages to about 1800.  It was about the size of a violin. Though originally plucked, it was played with a bow from the 11th century, and a fingerboard was added behind the strings in the last part of the 13th century.” 

While there is similar meanings among the Welsh crwth, the Anglo-Saxon cruth, and the English crowd, there is some doubt whether the origin of the noun is Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, Greek, etc.  Interestingly, some lexicographers have remarked that crouth also traces its origins to Scandinavia where its name is akin to the Old Norse word kurra “to growl” and India where the Sanskrit work krús means ‘to cry’ or ‘to produce a loud sound.’ However, the general agreement among lexicographers, regardless of the spelling of the name, is that it describes a player of a string musical instrument that is played with a bow, a fiddler.

The Crowther surname has had its English geographic origins traced to Lancashire, Yorkshire, Surrey, Cheshire, and Devon.  However, the surname also traces its origins to Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.  By way of the Crowther Surname Y-DNA project it is hoped that a better understanding of the heredity of the surnames’ genetic clans and identify their geno-geographic origins.