Crowdy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The Crowdy family name dates back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. The name comes from when an early member worked as a person who played a crowd, a stringed instrument similar to a fiddle or six-string violin. This instrument was known as a crouth or croude in Old English, and is still known as a crwth in Wales and as a cruit in Ireland. People in the West of England still refer to a fiddle as a crowdy-kit. 1 Professional musicians of this sort made their livings primarily by playing at medieval fairs and wedding feasts. In Scotland "crowdie" means porridge.

Early Origins of the Crowdy family

The surname Crowdy was first found in Kent where it is generally understood that the first record of the name was found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1275 as Richard le Cruder. 2 3 A few years later, Hugo le Crouder was listed in Leicestershire in 1278 and Kenwrick le Cruther was listed in the Assize Rolls of Cheshire in 1289. 3 In Yorkshire, Adam le Crouther was listed in 1296 and Katerina Crowder and Thomas Crouder were listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 2

Early History of the Crowdy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Crowdy research. Another 104 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1642, 1646, 1830 and 1874 are included under the topic Early Crowdy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crowdy Spelling Variations

Crowdy has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name Crowdy have been found, including Crowder, Crowther, Crouder, Crowdder, Crodare, Crowdair, Crowdere, Crowthers, Crouder, Croader, Croather, Crother, Crawther, Craudder, Crauther, Crauder, Craudair, Crothair, Crowthair, Crowthare, Croder, Crouter, Crowter and many more.

Early Notables of the Crowdy family

More information is included under the topic Early Crowdy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Crowdy family to Ireland

Some of the Crowdy family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 33 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crowdy migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Crowdy Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Crowdy, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Cromwell" in 1849 4

Crowdy migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Crowdy Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

L. Crowdy, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Nimroud" in 1860
J. Crowdy, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Nimroud" in 1860
Jane Crowdy, aged 20, who arrived in Lyttelton, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ballochmyle" in 1874

Contemporary Notables of the name Crowdy (post 1700) +

William Saunders Crowdy (1847-1908), American soldier, preacher, entrepreneur, theologian, and pastor
James Crowdy (1794-1867), English-born, Newfoundland politician, Speaker of the House of Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador from 1843 to 1848
James Gordon Crowdy (1847-1918), English cricketer
Dame Rachel Eleanor Crowdy DBE (1884-1964), English nurse and social reformer, Principal Commandant of Voluntary Aid Detachments in France and Belgium from 1914 to 1919
Edith Francis Crowdy CBE (1880-1947), London-born, Deputy Director of the Women's Royal Naval Service, the first general secretary of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
Major-General Joseph Porter Crowdy CB, FRIPH (b. 1923), British soldier and military physician, and Commandant of the Royal Army Medical College, Honorary Physician to the Queen (1981-1984)

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CROMWELL 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Cromwell.htm