ABSTRACT
Francis Hsu has argued that other kinship relations and non-kin behavior in Africa may best be understood by reference to the dominance of the brother-brother relationship in nuclear family life (1967:437-49). I w i l l present materials from two Bantu cultures relevant to this hypothesis. The people among whom we w i l l search out compatabilities are the Fang of Gabon and the Zulu of Natal. 1 The discussion applies particularly to the Ntumu-Fang and the Fang-Fang of northern Gabon and the Zulu of the Durban townships and the nearby Nyuswa and Ndwedwe reserves. I want to present: (1) legendary and historical materials; (2) contempo rary ethnographic materials; and (3) some materials relevant to the test ing of the hypothesis.
