Ibitekerezo is a form of epic hero poetry that was performed at the royal court in precolonial Rwanda. This oral tradition serves to explain the history of Rwandan dynasties in poetic form.[1] It is one of four major royal traditions of the Kingdom of Rwanda alongside ubwiru (royal rituals) and the oral literature forms ubucurabwenge (royal genealogies typically recited at coronation ceremonies) and ibisigo (royal poems).[2] Ethnographers Jean Hiernaux and Emma Maquet recorded several major ibitekerezo.[3]