There are tons of fascinating and even crazy One Piece theories out there, many of which focus on far more mysterious topics, but nothing is stopping amine enthusiasts from breaking down some of the more mundane aspects of the protagonists' lives. Countless One Piece fans still have questions about Luffy's biological mother—many believing Crocodile is a girl and Luffy's mother.

Incidental and circumstantial evidence suggests that Crocodile may have been born female, transformed into a male due to Iva's Devil Fruit gender-altering powers—potentially supported by canonical details and strategic imagery from One Piece. Some visual clues and behavioral changes indicate that Crocodile is Luffy's biological mother (Croco-Mom) ​​before the change, though nothing has been confirmed.

While the theory may seem hard to believe at first, many dedicated One Piece fans support it—the theory has now been dubbed the “Croco-Mom” theory within the community. Stick around to find out everything you need to know about Crocodile being female and Luffy’s mother in One Piece—and some evidence that might just convince you!

Is Crocodile a girl?

Crocodile appears to be male throughout One Piece's story, and the character lacks what is considered "feminine" in terms of physical characteristics. Crocodile was originally introduced in the One Piece manga in 2009 during the Impel Down arc, meeting Luffy and Iva—where it is revealed that they have known each other since their debut. He apparently teases Crocodile by using the name "Croco-boy," threatening to reveal a secret from the past—as seen below thanks to Nizam Jaffar:

Of course, this could mean absolutely anything in the One Piece universe. So, what's causing fans to interpret Crocodile's secret in this specific context? Well, things got a little more ambiguous when Iva revealed that he has sex-changing hormonal powers via his Devil Fruit—a rather interesting detail that might otherwise seem random.

Using this as a basis, many fans began to believe that Iva was using her Devil Fruit powers on Crocodile, transforming her from female to male by triggering "natural" male hormones. The kind of secret hinted at, Crocodile and Iva's relationship, and the Devil Fruit power revealed all seem to add up.

It definitely paints "Croco-boy" in a mocking and smug light. Of course, none of this has been confirmed, but there is certainly evidence that could push this theory in a more plausible direction. The theory only gained traction when Oda published a sketch of the warlords as children, seen below thanks to SK Anime, which would have been well before the beginning of One Piece's storyline.

Some fans might say that Crocodile looks like a young boy here, while most fans argue that the image doesn't actually depict "typical" male features—even when he was a child. In fact, the resemblance in terms of Crocodile's eyes, eyelashes, small facial silhouette, longer hair, and thin neck and shoulder area resembles Boa Hancock's features (when compared to anyone else in the One Piece universe).

The only other evidence that describes Crocodile's past is a brief clip of Roger's execution, as seen below thanks to Cutty Flam. Coincidentally, Crocodile is the only character shown from the back rather than the front in both the anime and manga.

However, it's interesting to note that Crocodile as a 'male' is usually seen with a cigar on his left, while the 'female' sketch shows Crocodile with a cigar on his right – also seen in the execution scene above. If fans know anything about Oda, it's that he loves to tease theories, continuing with the One Piece Chapter 938 cover page featuring Crocodile and titled 'A Woman's Secret' / 'Her Secret' of all things.

Knowing Oda, one coincidence too many makes a theory plausible, so it's much more likely that this is a reference to Croco-Mom in some sense. Furthermore, Crocodile's character is also very gender-related in other aspects, which only strengthens the theory.

Is Crocodile Luffy's Mother? (The Crocodile-Mom Theory Explained)

Luffy leads the way in the One Piece universe, serving as the main protagonist, ready to embark on countless adventures alongside his fellow Straw Hat Pirates. There are still a ton of questions, such as Luffy's true destiny in the One Piece world and Luffy's main love interest, but one burning question many fans have is his ancestry.

Fans have some information about Luffy's father, but countless fans still wonder who Luffy's mother is—especially since the reveal scene describes Luffy and Ace as "stepbrothers." Surprisingly, many believe that Luffy's mother could be none other than Crocodile, the former warlord.

Needless to say, the entire basis of this theory would be Crocodile being a female from birth—if this aspect were proven incorrect, it would of course put a damper on the work. Even then, Croco-Mom being Luffy's mother is a completely different story, assuming Crocodile had a relationship with Monkey D. Dragon. Many fans support this theory since Crocodile attempts to kill Luffy twice, once during Alabasta, though it's possible Crocodile wouldn't recognize his own son after so long.

There are a few things that could indicate that Crocodile is his mother, mainly due to Crocodile's connection to the Okama Kingdom. Additionally, there are currently two "mafia" specials, seen below thanks to ProLucK7, in which Luffy is portrayed with a remarkably accurate resemblance to the Crocodile we've seen so far.

That being said, there hasn't been much more "evidence"—unless you consider Crocodile's strange behavior and character change after Luffy's lineage was revealed at Marineford, seen below thanks to OnePieceChannel2013. Similar to the convenient setting change during Roger's execution, Crocodile's reaction isn't shown when Luffy's father is revealed.

Unless Crocodile had a sudden change of heart and personality off-screen, there's a good chance this sudden change was due to the revelation. Shortly after, Crocodile and Daz Bones even help Mihawk stay busy so Luffy can progress unscathed—this was even questioned by Mihawk, as there was really no reason to help Luffy.

From this point on, Crocodile's behavior becomes even more savage, to the point where he attacks Akainu just to help Luffy escape. This is in addition to using Sables to transport them to safety, as seen below thanks to OathandOblivion13.

Considering Crocodile usually prefers to leave the "weak" behind, this is all quite strange. The manga also shows Crocodile standing alongside his enemy, Whitebeard, just to help Luffy.

There's certainly nothing to fully validate Croco-mom, but the accuracy of this theory keeps getting more and more real, now complemented by fanart showing what Crocodile might have looked like before the switch, as seen below. Furthermore, Oda's oddly strategic portrayals and Crocodile's strong maternal instinct for Luffy only add fuel to the fire.

For more info on the Croco-Mom theory, watch the video below by Anime no Mi:

While there's no solid evidence that Crocodile is Luffy's mother, there's nothing concrete to disprove it either. It can be frustrating to have to guess the origins and heritage of your favorite anime character, but most anime have a foundation filled with ambiguous plots and leave room for fan interpretations—it's part of what makes the best anime series so special!