Shannon diversity index A diversity index that is based on the number of taxa, and the proportion of individuals in each taxa relative to the entire community, evaluated as entropy. Also known as Shannon-Weaver diversity index, the Shannon-Wiener index, the Shannon index and the Shannon entropy. Originally from the CUAHSI HIS VariableNameCV. See: http://his.cuahsi.org/mastercvreg/edit_cv11.aspx?tbl=VariableNameCV. ODM2 Variable Name Controlled Vocabulary ODM2 Working Group A vocabulary for describing the name of Variables.