Genealogy and Cultural Heritage of Jackfruit, the Moraceae Giant

This chapter describes the taxonomy, origin, domestication, genetic diversity, and evolution of jackfruit. The origin and domestication sections trace the crop’s origin beginning with the Moraceae family to the individual species. The chapter further describes the genetic diversity of the crop in terms of molecular and morphological variation as well as its evolutionary divergence from other members of the genus Artocrapus. Jackfruit is an economically important fruit crop with edaphoclimatic adaptations grown in tropical and subtropical regions. The crop belongs to the family Moraceae and genus Artocarpus. Its economic significance stems from the big-sized fruits it produces, which are widely consumed as food though possess other numerous benefits, including medicinal values. Despite the fact that its exact origin is still contentious, Indo-Burma region and Siam-Malaya-Java have been postulated as the likely origins given their position as centers of diversity. From the centers of diversity, jackfruit, is believed to have spread to other areas, and currently, jackfruit thrives well in both tropical and subtropical continents, including Asia, Africa, and the Neotropics. Humans have closely interacted with jackfruit and generated several beliefs around the crop concerning the destruction of its trees, consumption of its dishes, as well as having religious attachments. For instance, the jackfruit plant is a sacred tree at Kaini Hill in Manipur, India. Morphologically, jackfruit has shown wide variability, although most molecular studies have revealed moderate diversity. Despite the long-time relations humans have had with jackfruit, they have hardly altered its genetic constitution. Maintenance of desired jackfruit traits has been through selection and grafting.