Everything You Need to Know about Chicago Style Citations

 Chicago style is often used by history and social sciences researchers to structure their references. It comes in two varieties – notes and bibliography and author-date.

Scholars working in the humanities widely use the notes and bibliography system. Each source is cited in numbered footnotes and listed in a separate bibliography. In contrast, the researchers in the science and social sciences domain commonly use the author-date system.

Here, brief citations are written parentheses with the author's last name and publication year and complete references in the Chicago style bibliography section.

 

Notes and Bibliography: Various Sources with Examples

 

Ø Book

Notes: Jordan Smith, Spring Time (New York: Penguin Press, 2017), 325–16.

complete references.Shortened notes: Smith, Spring Time, 325.

Bibliography entries: Smith, Jordan. Spring Time. New York: Penguin Press, 2017.

Ø E-book

For e-books, add an URL or the name of the database. In case there is no page number, you can cite a title/chapter or omit.

Notes: Giyani B. Keith and Ralph Lobo, eds., The Citation Guide (Chicago: University Press, 1989), chap. 11, doc. 29, http://press-pubs.uchicago.org/citation/ 

Shortened notes: Keith and Lobo, The Citation Guide, chap. 11, doc. 1989.

Bibliography entries: Keith, Giyani B., and Ralph Lobo, eds. The Citation Guide. Chicago: University Press, 1989. http://press-pubs.uchicago.org/citation/

Ø Journal article

In a note, cite particular page numbers. In the bibliography, add the page range for the entire article.

Notes: Solomon Seinfeld, “Children and Psychology,” Classical Philology 11, no. 4 (April 2018): 180

Shortened notes: Seinfeld, “Children,” 170–80.

Bibliography entries: Seinfeld, Solomon. “Children and Psychology.” Classical Philology 11, no. 4 (April 2018): 170–80.

 

Ø News or magazine article

For citing print sources - newspaper, magazines, blogs, and the like add page numbers in a note but omit it from a bibliography. You can add a URL for an online article.

Notes: Willow Feynman, “Advancement of technology through the camera lenses,” City Times, March 9, 2015, https://www.citytimes.com/2015/03/09/technology/advancement-of-technology-through-the-camera-lenses.html 

Shortened notes: Feynman, “Advancement.”

Bibliography entries: Feynman, Willow “Advancement of technology through the camera lenses,” City Times, March 9, 2015, https://www.citytimes.com/2015/03/09/technology/advancement-of-technology-through-the-camera-lenses.html

 

Author-Date: Various Sources with Examples

The following examples illustrate the author-date system. A corresponding in-text citation accompanies each instance of a reference list entry.

Ø Book

Reference list entries: Taylor, Brian, and Charles Bonsai. 2017. A Curious Child. New York: Simon & Simon.

In-text citations: (Taylor and Bonsai 2017, 18)

Ø E-book

Include an URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry. If there's no page number, cite the title/chapter.

Reference list entries: Austen, Jane. 2008. Pride and Prejudice. London: Penguin Classics. Kindle.

In-text citations: (Austen 2008, chap. 5)

 

Ø Journal article

In the reference list, include the page range for the whole article. In the text, cite specific page numbers. For reports consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry.

Reference list entries: Ming, Shao-Hsun, Lee Lin, and Peter F. William, 2017. "Higher Education in Asia, 1990–2017: Effects on Education Quality and Income Inequality.” Journal of Education and Career 9, no. 3 (Spring): 1–35. https://doi.org/10.1006/68835

In-text citations: (Ming, Lin, and William 2017, 1-35)

Ø News or magazine article

Add page numbers in the text but omit it from the reference list. You can also add an URL for online articles.

Reference list entries: Stevenson, Rob. 2008. “Apple’s products are Sleek, Smart and Simple.” Daily Post, July 5, 2008. http://www.vox.com/culture/2008/7/5/15255084/peeps-apple 

In-text citation: (Stevenson 2007)

After you are through with your citations, make sure to check them carefully for some accidental mistake. Why wait? Start practicing!

Summary: Learning how to cite in Chicago style will be no longer challenging if you nail the basics. If you are struggling with the basics, you may find this article useful.