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How did Greenberg use cognates to classify Niger-Congo languages?

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Thematic map of Africa showing the distribution of Niger-Congo language branches. Distinct colors represent language groups such as Atlantic, Mande, Gur, Kwa, Benue-Congo, and Bantu, with Bantu languages covering most of central, eastern, and southern Africa. A numbered key lists prominent languages in each area, and country borders are marked for reference. — Niger-Congo languages Map showing the branches and distribution of the Niger-Congo languages.

Joseph H. Greenberg classified the Niger-Congo language family by rejecting classifications based solely on general typological features, such as the presence of noun classes, unless they were substantiated by detailed comparisons of actual forms.1

Instead, he employed a method he termed "mass comparison." This approach involved comparing basic vocabulary word lists across a large number of languages to establish cognates in at least some of the languages within his proposed groupings. Furthermore, he compared specific grammatical morphemes across these languages to determine if they shared similar forms and functions. Through this work, Greenberg established that the languages previously identified by Diedrich Westermann as Western Sudanic and the Bantu languages formed a single genetic family.1

While Greenberg’s method of mass comparison has been criticized by some for building hypotheses without the rigorous evidence required by the traditional comparative method, most of his conclusions regarding the Niger-Congo family are generally accepted by scholars today.12