Consideration of two genesis traditions which both refer to the arrival of a single dynasty on Ijwi Island in Lake Kivu, Zaire. The traditions appear to be mutually exclusive and distinct in three ways: they are recounted by members of different groups, they refer to different events within the larger episode of royal arrival, and they exist today in different forms. How can two such traditions be related to the same episode, why have they remained so distinct from each other, and why have they retained a narrow distribution on Ijwi? The author discusses the traditions in light of the social characteristics of the two clans that recount them, relates the traditions to the historical role of each ‘possessor’ clan, and considers how the two traditions may have evolved over time, indicating some of the historical factors acting on these changes. The paper is based on ten months of fieldwork carried out on Ijwi Island at various intervals during the period 1972/75. Maps, notes.
