Abstract
Barnī is the main variety of date palm grown in the oasis of al-‘Ulā and its region. The aim of this study is to check the status of this date palm and precisely to identify whether it is a true-to-type cultivar or an ethnovariety, i.e. if its local identity, given by the farmers, corresponds to a unique genetic identity (and therefore locally reproduced always vegetatively) or if it refers to a multiplicity of genetic forms. Following whole genome resequencing, our population genetic analyses show that barnī is a true-to- type cultivar in al-‘Ulā and nearby palm groves.