This paper presents a methodology for quantifying diversity within a group of related languages and correlating the patterns found with known historical developments, as a way of testing a variety of hypotheses, regarding subclassification, reconstruction, the influence of language contact, the relative consistency of the speed of language change, etc. The methodology is applied to Arabic dialects, for which there is a wealth of synchronic variation as well as considerable historical documentation on both linguistic and migration history. The goal is to establish a more solid empirical basis for inferring diachronic conclusions based on comparative analysis of synchronic data.

本文提出了一种方法，用于量化一组相关语言中的多样性，并将发现的模式与已知的历史发展相关联，以此作为检验各种假设的方法，这些假设涉及分类，重构，语言接触的影响，语言的相对一致性。该方法适用于阿拉伯方言，因为阿拉伯方言存在大量的共时变化，并且在语言和迁徙历史上都有大量的历史文献。目的是在对同步数据进行比较分析的基础上，为推断历时结论建立更坚实的经验基础。