McGovern Library: History: Chicago / Turabian Citations

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Purdue Online Writing Lab: Chicago Style Guide
Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) provides writing resources and instructional materials for writing projects. The Chicago Style Guide includes an introduction to the style, citation formatting for various sources, formatting for in-text citations and reference lists, and more.

Turabian Style Guide Homepage
Learn the Chicago style directly from the authors of the Turabian manual. The Turabian website provides guidance, formatting, and examples of how to cite within the style.

Citation Machine: Chicago Style
Citation Machine is a free, online citation creator. Easily cite websites, books, articles, videos, and more. Just fill in the information, and remember to double check the accuracy of the citation before placing it in your reference list.

A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations
Call Number: Reference LB2369 .T8 2018
ISBN: 9780226494425
The Chicago Manual of Style
Call Number: Reference Z253 .U69 2017
ISBN: 9780226287058

About Chicago Style

Chicago Style is most commonly used by those working in literature, history, and the arts. History majors most commonly use Chicago Style. Turabian is a simpler version of Chicago style meant for students who are writing materials that will not be published. The Turabian guide is shorter and includes information on formatting rules, the basics of researching and writing academic papers, and citation style.

Always check with your professor to determine which citation style you should use before beginning your paper or project.

Learn more about creating citations by visiting
the library's the Citing Sources guide.

Formatting Examples

Before you start creating your citations, you will need to identify:

Who created the source?
How can you identify the source?
What is the publication information?
Where can others find the source?

Two Citation Styles

There are two styles in which to cite your sources: Notes Style and Author-Date Style. Always ask your instructor about which style to use before beginning your research.

Notes Style: In this style, you signal that you have used a source by placing a superscript number at the end of the sentence in which you used the source. You will then create a note where you will place the full citation. Notes are placed either at the bottom of the page (footnotes) or at the end of the chapter (endnotes). You will also list all sources used at the end of the paper in a Bibliography.

Author-Date Style: In this style, you signal that you have used a source by placing a parenthetical citation (including author, date, and page numbers) next to your reference and within the body of your paper. Example: (Lepore 2015, 17). You will also list all sources used at the end of the paper in a Bibliography.

Rules for the Bibliography or References Page

Label the first page of your back matter, your comprehensive list of sources, “Bibliography” (for Notes and Bibliography style) or “References” (for Author-Date style).
Leave two blank lines between “Bibliography” or “References” and your first entry.
Leave one blank line between remaining entries.
List entries in letter-by-letter alphabetical order according to the first word in each entry, be that the author's name or the title of the piece..
Use “and,” not an ampersand, “&,” for multi-author entries.
- For two to three authors, write out all names.
- For four to ten authors, write out all names in the bibliography but only the first author’s name plus “et al.” in notes and parenthetical citations.
- When a source has no identifiable author, cite it by its title, both on the references page and in shortened form (up to four keywords from that title) in parenthetical citations throughout the text.
- Write out publishers’ names in full.
- Do not use access dates unless publication dates are unavailable.
- If you cannot ascertain the publication date of a printed work, use the abbreviation “n.d.”
- Provide DOIs instead of URLs whenever possible.
- If no DOI is available, provide a URL.
- If you cannot name a specific page number when called for, you have other options: section (sec.), equation (eq.), volume (vol.), or note (n.).

When using the Author-Date Style, use parenthetical in-text citations and a reference list. In-text citations will include:

Author's last name
Year of publication
Page numbers referenced

For example, you would write (Nicholson 2010, 114-115). If no date is provided, replace the date with n.d. for no date.

	Structure	Example
A Work by One Author	(Author's last name Year, page numbers)	(Robisheaux 2009, 58-60)
A Work by Two Authors	(First author's last name and Second author's last name Year, Page numbers)	(Aciman and Rensin 2009, 32)
A Work by Three Authors	(First author's last name, Second author's last name, and Third Author's Last Name Year, Page numbers)	(Potter, Coldwater, and King 1998, 48-50)
A Work by Four or More Authors	(First author's last name et al. Year, page numbers)	(Thomas et al. 2020, 96-99)
Editor or Translator Listed In Place of Author	(Editor's or Translator's last name Year, page numbers)	(Doyle 1987, 200)
No Author	(Title Year, page numbers)	(Joan Faustus 1731, 25)
Without Page Numbers	(Author's last name Year, location information)	(Brown 2017, par. 1)
No Date	(Author's last name, n.d., page numbers)	(University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, n.d.)
Multiple Sources for the Same In-Text Citation	(First author's last name Year, pages; Second author's last name Year, pages)	(Robisheaux 2009, 75; Cyrus 2009, 56)

Source: "EasyBib Chicago/Turabian Style Guide" from EasyBib.com

Basic Form for Footnote or Endnote (N)

1. First name Last name, Title of Book (Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication), page number.

Basic Form for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry (B)

Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Book by One Author

N:
1. Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums (New York: Viking Press, 1958), 128.

B:
Kerouac, Jack. The Dharma Bums. New York: Viking Press, 1958.

Book by Two Authors

N:
2. Scott Lash and John Urry, Economies of Signs & Space (London: Sage Publications, 1994), 241-51.

B:
Lash, Scott, and John Urry. Economies of Signs & Space. London: Sage Publications, 1994.

Translated Work by One Author

N:
3. Julio Cortázar, Hopscotch, trans. Gregory Rabassa (New York: Pantheon Books, 1966), 165.

B:
Cortázar, Julio. Hopscotch. Translated by Gregory Rabassa. New York: Pantheon Books, 1966.

Book with Author and Editor

N:
4. Edward B. Tylor, Researches into the Early Development of Mankind and the Development of Civilization, ed. Paul Bohannan (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1964), 194.

B:
Tylor, Edward B. Researches into the Early Development of Mankind and the Development of Civilization. Edited by Paul Bohannan. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1964.

Chapter from a Single Authored Book

N:
5. Gloria Anzaldúa, “How to Tame a Wild Tongue,” in Borderlands: The New Mestiza – La Frontera (San Francisco: Aunt Lute Book Company, 1987), 53.

B:
Anzaldúa, Gloria. “How to Tame a Wild Tongue.” In Borderlands: The New Mestiza – La Frontera, 53–64. San Francisco: Aunt Lute Book Company, 1987.

Chapter from Edited Collection with Multiple Authors

N:
6. Muriel Harris, “Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers,” in A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One, ed. Ben Rafoth (New Hampshire: Heinemann, 2000), 24-34.

B:
Harris, Muriel. “Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers.” In A Tutor’s Guide: Helping Writers One to One, edited by Ben Rafoth, 24-34. New Hampshire: Heinemann, 2000.

Form Notes:

Author Name: Notes include the author’s name as listed in the article. Bibliographic entries, however, invert the author’s name (last name, first name).

Article Title: Both notes and bibliographies use quotation marks to set off the titles of articles within the journal.

Journal Title: Journal titles may omit an initial “The” but should otherwise be given in full, capitalized (headline-style), and italicized.

Issue Information: The volume number follows the journal title with no punctuation and is not italicized. The issue number (if it is given) is separated from the volume number with a comma and is preceded by “no.” The year appears in parentheses after the volume number (or issue number if given). The year may be preceded by a specific date, month, or season if given. Page information follows the year. For notes, page number(s) refer only to the cited material; the bibliography includes the first and last pages of the article.

Journal Article

Footnote or Endnote (N):
1. Susan Peck MacDonald, “The Erasure of Language,” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 619.

Bibliography (B):
MacDonald, Susan Peck. “The Erasure of Language.” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 585-625.

Electronic Journal

N:
1. Henry E. Bent, “Professionalization of the Ph.D. Degree,” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 141, accessed December 4, 2017, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1978286.

B:
Bent, Henry E. "Professionalization of the Ph.D. Degree.” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 0-145. Accessed December 4, 2017. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1978286.

Physical Magazine

Footnote or Endnote (N):
1. Emily Macel, “Beijing’s Modern Movement,” Dance Magazine, February 2009, 35.

Bibliography (B):
Macel, Emily. “Beijing’s Modern Movement.” Dance Magazine, February 2009.

Online Magazine

N:
1. Barron YoungSmith, "Date Local: The case against long-distance relationships," Green Room, Slate, February 4, 2009, http://www.slate.com/id/2202431/.

B:
YoungSmith, Barron. "Date Local: The case against long-distance relationships." Green Room. Slate, February 4, 2009. http://www.slate.com/id/2202431/.

Newspaper

N:
1. Nisha Deo, “Visiting Professor Lectures on Photographer,” Exponent (West Lafayette, IN), Feb. 13, 2009.

B:
Deo, Nisha. “Visiting Professor Lectures on Photographer.” Exponent (West Lafayette, IN), Feb. 13, 2009.

Basic Form for Footnote or Endnote (N):

1. Firstname Lastname, “Title of Web Page,” Name of Website, Publishing Organization, publication or revision date if available, access date if no other date is available, URL.

Basic Form for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry (B):

Lastname, Firstname. “Title of Web Page.” Name of Website. Publishing organization, publication or revision date if available. Access date if no other date is available. URL .

Webpage with Known Author and Date

N:
7. Richard Kimberly Heck, “About the Philosophical Gourmet Report,” last modified August 5, 2016, http://rgheck.frege.org/philosophy/aboutpgr.php.

B:
Heck, Richard Kimberly. “About the Philosophical Gourmet Report.” Last modified August 5, 2016. http://rgheck.frege.org/philosophy/aboutpgr.php.

Webpage with Known Date by Unknown Author

N:
8. “Illinois Governor Wants to 'Fumigate' State's Government,” CNN online, January 30, 2009, http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/30/illinois.governor.quinn/.

B:
"Illinois Governor Wants to 'Fumigate' State's Government.” CNN online. January 30, 2009. http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/30/illinois.governor.quinn/.

Webpage with Unknown Publication Date and Unknown Author

N:
9. “Band,” Casa de Calexico, accessed October 27, 2017, http://www.casadecalexico.com/band.

B:
“Band.” Casa de Calexico. Accessed October 27, 2017. http://www.casadecalexico.com/band.

Basic form for Footnote or Endnote (N)

1. Firstname Lastname (Screen name), “Post text”, social media service, indication of format/medium, publication date, time stamp, URL

Basic from for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry (B)

Lastname, Firstname (Screen name). “Post text”. Social media service, indication of format/medium, publication date, time stamp. URL.

YouTube Video

N:
Oliver Jeffers, “An Ode to Living on Earth,” TED, April 22, 2020, YouTube video, 10:47, https://youtu.be/zpn6MCmoK0g.

B:
Jeffers, Oliver. “An Ode to Living on Earth.” TED, April 22, 2020. YouTube video, 10:47. https://youtu.be/zpn6MCmoK0g.

Tweet

N:
2. Bill Nye (@BillNye), “While I’m not much for skipping school, I sure am in favor of calling attention to the seriousness of climate change. Our students can see the problem…,” Twitter, March 14, 2019, https://twitter.com/BillNye/status/1106242216123486209.

B:
Nye, Bill (@BillNye). “While I’m not much for skipping school, I sure am in favor of calling attention to the seriousness of climate change. Our students can see the problem….” Twitter, March 14, 2019. https://twitter.com/BillNye/status/1106242216123486209.

Instagram Photo

N:
3. National Geographic, "Photo of Bering Sea by Corey Arnold." Instagram, April 2, 2017, https://www.instagram.com/p/BSaisVuDk7S/?taken-by+natgeo.

B:
National Geographic. “Photo of Bering Sea by Corey Arnold.” Instagram, April 2, 2017. Accessed April 7, 2017. https://www.instagram.com/p/BSaisVuDk7S/?taken-by+natgeo.

Podcast

N:
1. Sean Cole and Ira Glass, “622: Who You Gonna Call?,” August 4, 2017, in This American Life, produced by WBEZ, podcast, MP3 audio, 1:00:27, https://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/622/who-you-gonna-call.

B:
Cole, Sean and Ira Glass. “622: Who You Gonna Call?.” Produced by WBEZ. This American Life. August 4, 2017. Podcast, MP3 audio, 1:00:27. https://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/622/who-you-gonna-call.