Which lake is the source of the White Nile according to many geographic accounts?

Lake Victoria is commonly identified as the source of the White Nile in geographic accounts.

The White Nile’s Ugandan course begins at Lake Victoria’s northern outlet near Jinja. From there, the river is called the Victoria Nile as it flows through Uganda, including Lake Kyoga, before entering Lake Albert. Beyond Lake Albert it is known as the Albert Nile, eventually continuing through South Sudan toward the Nile’s main course.

The wording matters because the Nile system has several competing definitions of “source.” Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and the major lake reservoir associated with the White Nile, but its own inflowing rivers rise farther south and west. The Kagera River is often treated as Lake Victoria’s longest feeder, while investigations have traced the Nile’s most distant headwaters toward Burundi or Rwanda.

Lake Kyoga, Lake Albert and Lake Edward are therefore connected to the system but are not the conventional answer to this question. Kyoga lies downstream of Victoria, and Albert lies farther along the Victoria Nile’s route.