Abstract
The cultivated bananas are conventionally classified by reference to ploidy (2x, 3x, 4x) and genomic contributions made by the two diploid wild species principally involved in their evolution (Musa acuminata, AA, and Musa balbisiana, BB). A simple numerical scoring system developed some 30 years ago is here subjected to re-analysis by modem methods. Principal coordinate analysis agrees well with conventional methods but offers no evident refinement or gain in precision. Clustering methods, likewise, agree but add nothing new. Since several new hybrid groups have been recognized in recent years, the need for a general extension/revision of the system is recognized. There is no critical evidence in favour of the view that there exist pure balbisiana cultivars (BB, BBB).
