Citation Formatting Examples

The first time a specific work is cited, provide its full details in a footnote. Subsequent references need to be provided in a shortened note format. 

Please note that all references in other languages than English should be translated. 

In places where multiple works are cited in the same sentence or phrase, a single footnote at the end of the phrase is preferable, citing all works separated by a semicolon. 

Books

Titles should be listed in italics. Traditionally, the facts of publication for books include the place (city), the publisher, and the date (year). 

The city is usually indicated on the title or copyright page, and is the place where the publisher's editorial office is located. For cases where multiple cities are listed, only the first one should be included. Commonly used English names of cities are prefered. If there is no place of publication specified, the abbreviation n.p. is to be used before the publisher's name. The publisher name does not need to be translated to English. 

Regarding the date of publication, for books, only the year, not the month or day, is included in the publication date. In the very rare case when the date cannot be discerned, the abbreviation n.d. should be included. 

footnotes:

1. Zadie Smith, Swing Time (New York: Penguin Press, 2016), 315–16.

2. Brian Grazer and Charles Fishman, A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2015), 12.

3. Pierre Rosanvallon, Le Siècle du populisme. Histoire, théorie, critique [The Century of Populism. History, Theory, Critique] (Paris: Seuil, 2020.)

4. Amy Einsohn, The Copyeditor's Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications, with Exercises and Answer Keys, 3rd ed. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2011), 401-2.

shortened footnotes: Smith, Swing Time, 320. // Grazer and Fishman, Curious Mind, 37. // Rosanvallon, Le Siècle du populisme. // Einsohn, The Copyeditor's Handbook.

Chapter or part of an edited book

In a footnote, cite specific pages. 

footnote: Henry David Thoreau, “Walking,” in The Making of the American Essay, ed. John D’Agata (Minneapolis: Graywolf Press, 2016), 177–78.

shortened footnote: Thoreau, “Walking,” 182.

In some cases, you may want to cite the collection as a whole instead.

footnote: John D’Agata, ed., The Making of the American Essay (Minneapolis: Graywolf Press, 2016), 177–78.

shortened footnote: D’Agata, American Essay, 182.

Translated book

footnote: Jhumpa Lahiri, In Other Words, trans. Ann Goldstein (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2016), 146.

shortened footnote: Lahiri, In Other Words, 184.

E-book

For books consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database and the date it was consulted. For other types of e-books, name the format. If no fixed page numbers are available, cite a section title or a chapter or other number in the notes, if any (or simply omit).

footnote: 

1. Herman Melville, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1851), 627, http://mel.hofstra.edu/moby-dick-the-whale-proofs.html.

2. Philip B. Kurland and Ralph Lerner, eds., The Founders’ Constitution (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987), chap. 10, doc. 19, http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/.

3. Brooke Borel, The Chicago Guide to Fact-Checking (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2016), 92, ProQuest Ebrary.

4. Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (New York: Penguin Classics, 2007), chap. 3, Kindle.

Shortened notes: Melville, Moby-Dick, 722–23. // Kurland and Lerner, Founders’ Constitution, chap. 4, doc. 29. // Borel, Fact-Checking, 104–5.

Journal article

Titles of articles are set in roman (except for individual words or phrases that require italics, such as species names or book titles; they are usually capitalized headline-style and put in quotation marks. In a footnote, cite specific page numbers. For articles consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database and the date it was consulted. Many journal articles list a DOI (Digital Object Identifier). A DOI forms a permanent URL that begins with https://doi.org/. This URL is preferable to the URL that appears in your browser’s address bar.

footnote: 

1. Susan Satterfield, “Livy and the Pax Deum,” Classical Philology 111, no. 2 (April 2016): 170.

2. Shao-Hsun Keng, Chun-Hung Lin, and Peter F. Orazem, “Expanding College Access in Taiwan, 1978–2014: Effects on Graduate Quality and Income Inequality,” Journal of Human Capital 11, no. 1 (Spring 2017): 9–10, https://doi.org/10.1086/690235.

3. Peter LaSalle, “Conundrum: A Story about Reading,” New England Review 38, no. 1 (2017): 95, Project MUSE.

shortened footnotes: Satterfield, “Livy,” 172–73. // Keng, Lin, and Orazem, “Expanding College Access,” 23. / /LaSalle, “Conundrum,” 101.

Journal articles often list many authors, especially in the sciences. All authors should be listed in the citation. 

footnote: Rachel A. Bay, Noah Rose, Rowan Barrett, Louis Bernatchez, Cameron K. Ghalambor, Jesse R. Lasky, Rachel B. Brem, Stephen R. Palumbi, Peter Ralph, Associate Editor: Scott L. Nuismer, and Editor: Yannis Michalakis, “Predicting Responses to Contemporary Environmental Change Using Evolutionary Response Architectures.” American Naturalist 189, no. 5 (May 2017): 465, https://doi.org/10.1086/691233.

News or magazine article

Articles from newspapers or news sites, magazines, blogs, and the like are cited similarly. If you consulted the article online, include a URL or the name of the database.

footnote: 

1. Rebecca Mead, “The Prophet of Dystopia,” New Yorker, April 17, 2017, 43.

2. Farhad Manjoo, “Snap Makes a Bet on the Cultural Supremacy of the Camera,” New York Times (online), March 8, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/technology/snap-makes-a-bet-on-the-cultural-supremacy-of-the-camera.html.

3. Rob Pegoraro, “Apple’s iPhone Is Sleek, Smart and Simple,” Washington Post, July 5, 2007, LexisNexis Academic.

4. Tanya Pai, “The Squishy, Sugary History of Peeps,” Vox, April 11, 2017, http://www.vox.com/culture/2017/4/11/15209084/peeps-easter.

5. "BBC: corupția amenință securitatea națională [BBC: Corruption threaten the national security],” Hotnews, March 2005, accessed March 29, 2004, https://www.hotnews.ro/stiri-arhiva-1238761-bbc-coruptia-ameninta-securitatea-nationala.htm. 

6. Horațiu Pepine, “Combaterea corupţiei ca strategie de Securitate [Combating Corruption as a Security Strategy],” Deutsche Welle, February 28, 2005, accessed April 17, 2024, https://www.dw.com/ro/combaterea-corup%C5%A3iei-ca-strategie-de-securitate/a-2633456. 

shortened notes: Mead, “Dystopia,” 47. // Manjoo, “Snap.” // Pegoraro, “Apple’s iPhone.” // Pai, “History of Peeps.”

For unsigned newspaper articles, the title of the newspaper stands in place of the author. 

footnote: "In Texas, Ad Heats Up Race for Governor," New York Times, July 30, 2002.

Readers’ comments are cited in the text or in a footnote.

footnote: Eduardo B (Los Angeles), March 9, 2017, comment on Manjoo, “Snap.”

Press release

Names of news services, unlike titles of newspapers, are capitalized but not italicized.

1. Associated Press, "Texas A&M Galveston Professor Fails Entire Class, Quits Course," Dallas Morning News, April 28, 2015, http://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/headlines/20150428 -texas-am-galveston-profe ssor-fails-entire-class-quits-course.ece.

2. Federal Emergency Management Agency, "FEMA Awards $2,781,435 Grant to DuPage County," news release no. RV-NR-2015-006, March 19, 2015, https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2015/03/19/fema-awards-2781435-grant-dupage-county.

Book review

footnote: Michiko Kakutani, “Friendship Takes a Path That Diverges,” review of Swing Time, by Zadie Smith, New York Times, November 7, 2016.

shortened footnote: Kakutani, “Friendship.”

Interview

footnote: Kory Stamper, “From ‘F-Bomb’ to ‘Photobomb,’ How the Dictionary Keeps Up with English,” interview by Terry Gross, Fresh Air, NPR, April 19, 2017, audio, 35:25, http://www.npr.org/2017/04/19/524618639/from-f-bomb-to-photobomb-how-the-dictionary-keeps-up-with-english.

shortened note: Stamper, interview.

Thesis or dissertation

footnote: 

1. Cynthia Lillian Rutz, “King Lear and Its Folktale Analogues” (PhD diss., University of Chicago, 2013), 99–100.

2. Ilya Vedrashko, "Advertising in Computer Games" (master's thesis, MIT, 2006), 59, http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/39144.

shortened note: Rutz, “King Lear,” 158. // Vedrashko, "Advertising in Computer Games." 

Website content

The citation can be styled like the examples below. For a source that does not list a date of publication or revision, include an access date (as in example note 2).

footnote: 

1. “Privacy Policy,” Privacy & Terms, Google, last modified April 17, 2017, https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/.

2. “About Yale: Yale Facts,” Yale University, accessed May 1, 2017, https://www.yale.edu/about-yale/yale-facts.

3. Katie Bouman, “How to Take a Picture of a Black Hole,” filmed November 2016 at TEDxBeaconStreet, Brookline, MA, video, 12:51, accessed May 1, 2017, https://www.ted.com/talks/katie_bouman_what_does_a_black_hole_look_like.

shortened notes: Google, “Privacy Policy.” // “Yale Facts.” // Bouman, “Black Hole.”

If a site ceases to exist before publication, or if the information cited is modified or deleted, this information should be included in the footnote.

1. "Biography," on Pete Townshend's official website, accessed December 15, 2001, http://www.petetownshend.co.uk/petet_bio.html (site discontinued).

2. Anthony Blinken, “The Power and Purpose of American Diplomacy in a New Era,” September 13, 2023, speech given at John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, U.S. Department of State, https://www.state.gov/secretary-antony-j-blinken-remarks-to-the-johns-hopkins-school-of-advanced-international-studies-sais-the-power-and-purpose-of-american-diplomacy-in-a-new-era/ (web page removed by January 23, 2025). 

Social media content

In place of a title, quote up to the first 160 characters of the post. Comments are cited in reference to the original post. Please also include an access date before the link. If the content ceases to exist before publication, or if the information cited is modified or deleted, this information should be included in the note.

footnotes:

1. Junot Diaz, "Always surprises my students when I tell them that the 'real' medieval was more diverse than the fake ones most of us consume," Facebook, February 24, 2016, accessed January 18, 2018, https://www.facebook.com/junotdiaz.writer/posts/972495572815454.

2. Conan O'Brien (@ConanOBrien), "In honor of Earth Day, I'm recycling my tweets," Twitter, April 22, 2015, 11:10 a.m., accessed November 29, 2016, https://twitter.com/ConanOBrien/status/590940792967016448.

3. Chicago Manual of Style, "Is the world ready for singular they? We thought so back in 1993," Facebook, April 17, 2015, accessed April18, 2015, https://www.facebook.com/ChicagoManual/posts/10152906193679151.

4. Pete Souza (@petesouza) , "President Obama bids farewell to President Xi of China at the conclusion of the Nuclear Security Summit," Instagram photo, April 1, 2016, accessed April 2, 2016, https://www.instagram.com/p/BDrmfXTtNCt/.

5. Kristaps Licis, "But what is the surprise here?," February 24, 2016, comment on Diaz, "Always surprises," accessed March 1 2016,  https://www.facebook.com/junotdiaz.writer/posts/972495572815454?comment id=972558569475821.

6. Michele Truty, "We do need a gender-neutral pronoun," April 17, 2015, comment on Chicago Manual of Style, "singular they," accessed May 18, 2016, https://www.facebook.com/ChicagoManual/posts/10152906193679151?comment_id=10152906356479151.

shortened notes: Souza, “President Obama.” // Michele Truty, April 17, 2015, 1:09 p.m., comment on Chicago Manual of Style, “singular they.”

Blog

Blog posts and blogs should be cited as online newspapers. Citations include the author of the post; the title of the post, in quotation marks; the title of the blog, in italics. Please also include an access date before the link. If a site ceases to exist before publication, or if the information cited is modified or deleted, this information should be included in the note.

footnote: 

1. Deb Amlen, "One Who Gives a Hoot," Wordplay (blog) , New York Times, January 26, 2015, accessed March 19, 2015, http://wordplay.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/0l/26/one-who-gives-a-hoot/.

2. William Germano, "Futurist Shock,'' Lingua Franca (blog), Chronicle of Higher Education, February 15, 2017, accessed March 11, 2019, http://www.chronicle.com/blogs/linguafranca/2017/02/15/futurist-shock/.

shortened notes: Amlen, ”One Who Gives a Hoot.” // Germano, ”Futurist Shock.”

Video, podcast, and other online multimedia 

These types of content generally follow the norms for any other work - author, title, and manner of consultation need to be specified. Include a URL as the final element of the citation. For multimedia designed to run in a web browser, a file format does not need to be mentioned; if a downloadable file was consulted, specify format.

footnotes:

1. A. E. Weed, At the Foot of the Flatiron (American Mutoscope and Biograph Co., 1903), 35 mm film, from Library of Congress, The Life of a City: Early Films of New York, 1898-1906, MPEG video, 2:19 at 15 fps, http://www.loc.gov/item/00694378.

2. "Lang Lang: The Chopin Album," interview by Jeff Spurgeon, Artists at Google, October 15, 2012, video, 54:47, October 18, 2012, featuring performances of Nocturne in E-ftat Major, op. 55, no. 2; Etude in F Minor, op. 25, no. 2; Etude in E Major, op. 10, no. 3; and "Grande valse brillante" in E-ftat Major, op. 18, https://youtu.be/ld8xvlHHKtl.

3. Mike Danforth and Ian Chillag, "F-Bombs, Chicken, and Exclamation Points," April 21, 2015, in How to Do Everything, produced by Gillian Donovan, NPR, podcast, MP3 audio, 18:46, http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510303/how-to-do-everything.

shortened notes: Weed, At the Foot of the Flatiron. // Spurgeon, interview. // Danforth and Chillag, "F-Bombs."

Style Guidelines for Book Reviews

The title of the reviewed book should be listed as per the below indications. Please type your name and institution, exactly as you wish it to be published, at the end of the review. 

Example: Maria Ionescu, University of Bucharest.

Single-authored books

Giovanni Sartori

Parties and Party Systems: A Framework for Analysis

ECPR Press, UK, 2005, 368 pp.

Edited books

Francesco Cavatorta (ed.)

Civil Society Activism under Authoritarian Rule – A comparative perspective

Routledge Taylor and Francis Group, London and New York, 2012, 274 pp.