Guides: Chicago Citation Guide: Elements of Citation

Author

The author is one of the most important parts of a citation. Why? In order to properly connect ideas, inventions, and works, there has to be someone to credit with creating it! It is also a great way to help you evaluate the source of information for context and bias. An author can be a person, organization, association, or corporation.

Bibliography

In a bibliography, the author's name is written last name, first name.
Example
- Greenberg, Paul

Greenberg, Paul. CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tools, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers. 4th ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010.

Notes

In a citation note, the author's name is written first name last name.
Example
- Paul Greenberg

Paul Greenberg, CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tools, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers, 4th ed. (New York: McGraw Hill, 2010), 78-79.

Bibliography

In a bibliography, the name of the first author listed would be written: last name, first name. The second and third authors' names would be written first name last name.
Example
- Dunn, Joshua and Martin R. West

Dunn, Joshua and Martin R. West, eds. From Schoolhouse to Courthouse: The Judiciary’s Role in American Education. Washington, DC: Thomas B. Fordham / Brookings Institution, 2009.

Notes

In a citation, the name of the first author listed would be written: first name last name. The second and third authors' names would also be written first name last name.
Example
- Joshua M. Dunn and Martin R. West

Joshua M. Dunn and Martin R. West, eds., From Schoolhouse to Courthouse: The Judiciary’s Role in American Education (Washington, DC: Thomas B. Fordham Institute / Brookings Institution, 2009), 251-52.

Bibliography

When there are between four and ten authors, all names are usually included in the bibliography. The name of the first author listed would be written last name, first name. The following authors would be listed first name last name with a comma in between and the word "and" before the last author listed.
Example
- Boult, Chad, Jean Giddens, Katherine Frey, Lisa Reider and Tracy Novak

Boult, Chad, Jean Giddens, Katherine Frey, Lisa Reider and Tracy Novak. Guided Care: A New Nurse-Physician Partnership in Chronic Care. New York: Springer, 2009.

Notes

When there are four or more authors, it is only necessary to include the name of the first author listed with the phrase "et al." following the author's name.
Example
- Chad Boult et al.

Chad Boult et al., Guided Care: A New Nurse-Physician Partnership in Chronic Care (New York: Springer, 2009), 16.

Bibliography

When there is no author given on the title page, you can either skip the author's name and begin the citation with the title of the work, or if the author's name is known, but not listed on the title page, include the name in brackets.
Example
- Unknown author
  - CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tool, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers. 4th ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010.
- Known author
  - [Greenberg, Paul]. CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tool, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers. 4th ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2010.

Notes

When there is no author given on the title page, you can either skip the author's name and begin the citation with the title of the work, or if the author's name is known, but not listed on the title page, include the name in brackets.
Example
- Unknown author
  - CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tool, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers. 4th ed. (New York: McGraw Hill, 2010), 78-79.
- Known author
  - [Paul Greenberg], CRM at the Speed of Light: Social CRM Strategies, Tool, and Techniques for Engaging Your Customers. 4th ed. (New York: McGraw Hill, 2010), 78-79.

Bibliography

When an organization or corporation is responsible for the authorship of the publication, the name of the organization or corporation may be used in the author's place, even if it is also used as the publisher.
Example
- NAI (National Association of Interpretation). Interpretation in National Parks. New York: NAI, 2001.

Notes

When an organization or corporation is responsible for the authorship of the publication, the name of the organization or corporation may be used in the author's place, even if it is also used as the publisher.
Example
- NAI (National Association of Interpretation). Interpretation in National Parks. (New York: NAI, 2001), 2-3.

Title

Without a title it would be very hard, if not impossible, for someone to figure out what resource you are citing. Luckily, titles are usually easily identified.

Sometimes your source will have two titles. For example, if you used Poe's short story "The Pit and the Pendulum" from the book titled The Collected Tales and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe, you will include both the title of the short story and the title of the book. This is also the case for articles (there is an article title and a periodical title) and often for webpages (there is a webpage or web document title and a website title for the website on which it is included.

Bibliography

The titles of books should be written in italics and capitalized headline-style.
Example
- Matagorda: Early History

Jeter, Lorraine. Matagorda: Early History. Baltimore: Gateway Press, 1974.

Notes

The titles of books in citation notes may be shortened.
Example
- Matagorda: Early History would be shortened to just Matagorda

Lorraine Jeter. Matagorda. (Baltimore: Gateway Press, 1974), 55-59.

Bibliography

The titles of articles should be enclosed in quotation marks while the title of the larger work the article is included in should be written in italics.
Example of an article in a printed journal
- Shelden, Rachel A. "Measures for a 'Speedy Conclusion': A Reexamination of Conscription and Civil War Federalism." Civil War History 55, no. 4 (2009): 469-98.
Example of an article in an online journal using a stable URL
- White, Barbara Erhlich. "Renoir's Trip to Italy." Art Bulletin 51, no. 4 (1969): 333-51. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3048651.

Notes

The titles of articles should be enclosed in quotation marks while the title of the larger work the article is included in should written in italics. As with book titles, article titles may be shortened, however, the title of the journal, magazine or newspaper that the article is located in should not be shortened in the notes.
- For example, the title "Measures for a 'Speedy Conclusion': A Reexamination of Conscription and Civil War Federalism" could be shortened to "Measures for a 'Speedy Conclusion"
Example of an article in a printed journal
- Rachel A. Shelden, "Measures for a 'Speedy Conclusion," Civil War History 55, no. 4 (December 2009): 469.

Bibliography

When information from a website is used, the following pieces of information should be included if available:
- The author, owner or sponsor of the site
- Title of web page or a brief description if no title is given
- The URL address
- Publication date or date of latest modification
- Date of access
Example
- American Diabetes Association. "Prediabetes." Last Modified July 31, 2013, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/prevention/pre-diabetes.

Notes

Example
- "Prediabetes," American Diabetes Association, last modified July 31, 2013, accessed August 5, 2014, http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/prevention/pre-diabetes.

Bibliography

When information from a website is used, the following pieces of information should be included if available:
- The name of writer, composer, etc.
- Title (if video is divided into chapters, include the title of the entire video, and use the chapter title as you would an article title and place in parenthesis)
- Name of publisher or recording company
- Identification number
- Medium (DVD,Blueray, MPEG video, etc.)
- Copyright date or date of performance
- URL address if an online video
Example of Online Video
- Young, Kenneth. "Environmental Change in the Western Amazon." Filmed January 19, 2010. YouTube video, 10.01. Posted by UTGRC, February 2, 2010. http://www.youtube.com/user/UTGRG#p/a/EA92E737E65029D0/0/iWbtHGz2Mn0.

Notes

Example of Online Video
- Kenneth Young. "Environmental Change in the Western Amazon," filmed January 19, 2010, YouTube video, 10:01, Posted by UTGRC, February 2, 2010, http://www.youtube.com/user/UTGRG#p/a/EA92E737E65029D0/0/iWbtHGz2Mn0.

Editor

Some publications will not have an author, rather an editor who is responsible for the content of the work. For example, an editor may produce a publication that includes the works of multiple authors, such as a collection of poetry. You will also find at times that a work will have both an author and an editor, of which, both names should be included in the citation.

When there is only an editor for the work, the editor's name goes in the place where the author's name usually goes.

Bibliography

Nemerov, Howard, ed. Poets on Poetry. New York: Basic Books, 1966.

Notes

Howard Nemerov, ed., Poets on Poetry (New York: Basic Books, 1966), 55.

When there is both an author and an editor, the editor's name is added after the title.

Bibliography

In the bibiliography, the editor's name is placed after the title with the words "Edited by" before his or her name.
Example
- Wolfe, Thomas. The Complete Short Stories of Thomas Wolfe. Edited by Francis E. Skipp. New York: Scribner, 1987.

Notes

In the notes, the editor's name is placed after the title with the abbreviation "ed." before his or her name.
Example
- Thomas Wolfe, The Complete Short Stories of Thomas Wolfe, ed. Francis E. Skipp (New York: Scribner, 1987), 45-53.

Edition/Volume/Issue/DOI/URL

When more than one edition exists of a work, the edition of the work that you are referencing should follow the title of the work.

Bibliography

Foner, Eric. The Story of American Freedom. 1st ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 1998.

Notes

Eric Foner, The Story of American Freedom, 1st ed. (New York: W.W. Norton, 1998), 58.

If you are referencing a multi volume work, there are a few rules to take note of.

Write the volume number in Arabic numbers, even if the source uses Roman numerals or the volume number is written out.
If you are citing the whole multi volume work, the total number of volumes is listed after the title and editor, if there is an editor.
If you are citing from only one volume in a multi volume work, the volume number as well as the individual volume title (if there is one) is listed after the title and editor, if there is an editor.

If you are referencing online periodicals that include a volume number, the volume number should follow the title without punctuation between the two.

Bibliography

Example of a multi volume print source:

Steingold, Fred S. Legal Guide for Starting and Running a Small Business. Edited by Ralph Warner. Vol. 2, Legal Forms. Berkeley: Nolo Press, 1997.

Example of volume number in an article from and online database:

Foner, Nancy. “Immigrant Women and Work in New York City, Then and Now.” Journal of American Ethnic History 18, no. 3 (1999): 95–113. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27502451.

Notes

Example of a multi volume print source:

Fred Steingold, Legal Guide for Starting and Running a Small Business, ed. Ralph Warner, vol. 2 Legal Forms (Berkely: Nolo Press, 1997), 55-68.

Example of volume number in an article from and online database:

Nancy Foner, “Immigrant Women and Work in New York City, Then and Now,” Journal of American Ethnic History 18, no. 3 (1999): 97, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27502451.

Issue numbers are often found with multi volume works such as journals. The issue number should follow the volume number prefaced by ": no."

Bibliography

Foner, Eric. “American Freedom in a Global Age.” The American Historical Review 106, no. 1 (2001): 1-16. doi:10.2307/2652222.

Notes

Eric Foner, “American Freedom in a Global Age,” The American Historical Review 106, no. 1 (2001): 10, doi:10.2307/2652222.

For research purposes, you will often use journal articles, especially articles from electronic/online journals as well as other online periodicals. When citing these sources, you will need to include the DOI (digital object identifier) or URL if no DOI is available.

Bibliography

Foner, Nancy. “Immigrant Women and Work in New York City, Then and Now.” Journal of American Ethnic History 18, no. 3 (1999): 95–113. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27502451.

Foner, Eric. “American Freedom in a Global Age.” The American Historical Review 106, no. 1 (2001): 1-16. doi:10.2307/2652222.

Notes

Nancy Foner, “Immigrant Women and Work in New York City, Then and Now,” Journal of American Ethnic History 18, no. 3 (1999): 97, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27502451.

Eric Foner, “American Freedom in a Global Age,” The American Historical Review 106, no. 1 (2001): 10, doi:10.2307/2652222.

Publication Information

The place of publication, usually a city name, is located on either the title page or the copyright page. When more than one place of publication is listed, it is only necessary to include the first city listed. If there is no place of publication given, the abbreviation n.p. may be used in its place.

Bibliography

Example of a print book:

Ford, Lacy K. Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.

Example if there were no publication place given:

Ford, Lacy K. Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South. N.p.: Oxford University Press, 2009.

Notes

Example of a print book:

Lacy K. Ford, Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), 107.

Example if there were no publication place given:

Lacy K. Ford, Deliver Us from Evil: The Slavery Question in the Old South, (n.p.: Oxford University Press, 2009), 107.

The publisher is the name of the company that produces the book. This information is located on the title page.

If the publisher's name includes the article "The" or abbreviations such as Inc. or Ltd., these may be omitted from the name in the bibliography and notes.

Example:
- Harry N. Abrams, Inc. would be changed to Harry N. Abrams
- The Overlook Press would be changed to Overlook Press

If the publisher is unknown, simply omit and use just the place and date.

Bibliography

Example of W.W. Norton & Co. as the publisher

Dickstein, Morris. Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010.

Notes

Example of W.W. Norton & Co. as the publisher

Morris Dickstein, Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression, (New York: W.W. Norton, 2010), 55-8.

The publication date is simply the date that the work was produced. Usually, the year of publication is suffice and goes after the name of the publisher.

Bibliography

Dickstein, Morris. Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010.

Notes

Morris Dickstein, Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression, (New York: W.W. Norton, 2010), 55-8.