In an historic attempt to map out the major tribes and families of the Arabic world, Wüstenfeld prepared this work based on three major types of documents. The first genre of material available for reconstructing such genealogical tables is the theoretical roots given in the main works of such scholars as Ibn Coteiba, Abulfeda, and Nuweiri. Other Arabic writers explore the traditional origins of families as well, and they also constitute one of the main resources available. A second major type of material used by the author was practical biographic and historical works in which the writers undertake to make an account of their own forebears. A third category of material comes in the form of a combined theoretical-practical genre composed of certain series of names that come from etymological or genealogical handbooks or alphabetically organized works such as lexical studies. Taken together these sources provide a wealth of information on family names. Wüstenfeld has organized the entries for his register alphabetically, providing a starting point for current day researchers on the Arabic past.

Heinrich Ferdinand Wüstenfeld (1808-1899) was a German Orientalist with a particular concern for Arabic study. Educated at Göttingen and Berlin, he eventually became a professor at the former. A prolific writers, he published several important works on Arabic history.