Yes, it means white, most things that bear fruit I believe are considered female!

Jack, it depends on what language, as I understand, a bridge in German is Male, whereas in Portuguese is Female... 

in Portuguese, we have many male trees and fruits, it comes to mind a peach tree is  pessegueirO, male, and its fruit  PessegO, also male...  and AbacateirO, but the fruit is AbacatE, also Male, so, one must know that language to know it for sure.Do not trust Google translation _ it is confusing - too many ---> horrible mistakes.   As to the Figo Branco, there is a Typo in Jon's listing.   It should be Figo Branco. Hope this helps...  

Forget the gender of the fig.. can someone confirm if this Figo Preto is Black Madeira?

Obrigado, Grasa! :)

From what I've read over the past few days, nobody can confirm that Figo Preto is identical to Black Madeira and some say Figo Preto requires less heat to achieve ripe fruit.  I don't know if the genetic testing done at the USDA lab at Davis is being done to the level that can distinguish differences between such similar labs, but it might be helpful.  I will try to test them out here and report back in five years. ;)

I would start with an email to one of the researchers at Davis and see if they know. They have always been very helpfull and responsive for me. I asked a researcher in NY who is looking at DNA traits