We review the available data on the phylogeny, palaeontology and divergence time estimation of primary freshwater crabs in
relation to a hypothesized Gondwanan origin of these brachyurans, as postulated by some workers in recent decades. Known
phylogenetic relationships within the Old World freshwater crabs do not correspond to the successive fragmentation of the
Gondwana continent. This is strong evidence against an ancestral Gondwanan distribution of Afrotropical Potamonautidae
and Asian-Australian Gecarcinucidae. The fossil record of freshwater crabs (no older than the Oligocene) and heterotreme
brachyurans also postdate the initial break up of Gondwana. Molecular-clock based time estimates for the most common recent
ancestor of freshwater crab families differ profoundly, depending on the method of calibration used, and whether freshwater
or marine brachyuran fossils are used as calibration points. As such, molecular clock estimates calibrated on freshwater crab
fossils favour a post-Gondwanan evolution of freshwater crabs whereas calibration based on marine brachyuran fossils date
their last common ancestor before the fragmentation of Gondwana.