The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th Edition presents a citation and format style, often referred to as Chicago, that is primarily used in professional publications and academic writing, including history and the humanities. Turabian style, outlined in A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, is a simplified version of Chicago designed for undergraduate academic writing. Note: This handout will be updated upon the release of the new Turabian manual.
There are two primary Chicago and Turabian in-text citation styles: notes and bibliography and author-date. The difference between these two styles involves how to cite specific sources: notes and bibliography uses a system of notes (footnotes or endnotes), which contains the citation information in the notes, paired with a full bibliography at the end. Author-date indicates the source of cited material using in-text parentheses and a corresponding reference list (like APA).
This handout provides a basic outline of the notes and bibliography citation style and format. Throughout the handout, Chicago and Turabian are cited (by the letters C and T, respectively, along with applicable section numbers), so readers can refer to the manuals for more information. While this handout covers general concepts, always work with your audience and assignment in mind.
Page numbers should be included and placed consistently, generally in one of four locations: (1) centered in the footer, (2) centered in the header, (3) flush right in the footer, or (4) flush right in the header
For the body of the paper, use a standard font such as 12-point Times New Roman or 10-point Arial. In general, use a smaller size font (10- or 11-point) for notes.
Double-space the text and leave a one-inch margin on all sides of the document. Indent the first line of each paragraph. For student papers, Turabian recommends single-spaced footnotes, endnotes, block quotes, and bibliographies. Professional publications may adhere to different Chicago formatting guidelines.
Section headings or subheadings can be used to title different sections of a paper. Organizing a paper with titled sections helps readers understand the structure of your argument, especially for longer papers. Indicate higher or lower-level headings with boldface, italics, centering, and title caps, though Chicago is flexible with this format. Here is a possible example:
| First Level: centered, bold or italics, title caps | The Problem of Universals in Medieval Philosophy |
|---|---|
| Second Level: centered, regular type, title caps | William of Ockham’s View of Universals |
| Third Level: left-aligned, regular type, title caps | Universals in Ockham’s Political Philosophy |
Longer quotations (e.g., multi-paragraph quotations or 100+ word quotations) should be formatted as block quotes. Block quotes are indented from the left, generally by 0.5 inches (the same as a regular paragraph indent) with no extra first-line paragraph indent. In Turabian, block quotes are single-spaced and start on their own line with no quotation marks. Include a blank line before and after the block quote. In notes and bibliography format, a footnote reference should follow the final punctation mark of the block quote. Text following a block quote should not be indented unless it begins a new paragraph.
Figures or illustrations can be placed in the body of the text to convey information in a more graphical manner or to reproduce an image for the reader’s convenience. Figures should be referenced in-text by the phrase Figure X (e.g., “Figure 3 shows that . . .”). Figures should be positioned close to their in-text reference. They should also be captioned, generally flush left beneath the image, with the word Figure and a number corresponding consecutively to the figures in the paper. This is followed by a short description of the figure (see Figure 1).
Figure 1. NASA Insignia. Design by James Modarelli, 1959. NASA.
In general, information about artwork (e.g., photographs, paintings, etc.) is included in the text but may also appear in the reference list. Artwork can be cited by the source (like a book or website) in which they were found or by the museum in which they are housed (see C 14.133).
Regardless of citation style, citing sources is a necessary and important part of academic writing because it allows writers to distinguish between their own work and the work of other authors. If writers do not acknowledge another author’s work, they commit plagiarism, which may have serious consequences.
The notes and bibliography system uses footnotes or endnotes to indicate the source of a particular quote, idea, or piece of information. These notes employ a superscripted number corresponding to an associated note at either the bottom of the page (footnote) or immediately preceding the bibliography (endnote). They can be inserted into your text with an “insert footnote” or “insert endnote” button available in most word processors. The number typically appears after the final punctuation of the sentence in which material is referenced.
The note contains the citation information of the source (author, title, publisher, etc.) as well as optional commentary, such as further analysis or comparison with other sources. You may also cite multiple sources or multiple pages within the same source.
The citational information of the note is formatted differently than that same information contained on the bibliography page. In general, the note format substitutes periods for commas and uses the order of first name then last name.
After the first use of a complete citation, notes and bibliography permits the note citation to be shortened, so only necessary information like the author, title, and page number are present in the shortened note.
Sometimes sources are missing information, such as the author’s name or the publication date. With missing authors, use the title of the source in its place. With a missing publication date, use the acronym n.d. (no date) in place of the date. Otherwise, the general rule is to skip missing information.
Chicago discourages citing secondary or indirect sources, which occurs when material from one source is quoted in another source. However, if unable to locate the original source, provide a full citation of the secondary source in the bibliography, and include the original source as part of the note.
Unpublished personal communication or interviews should be cited in text and accompanied by context and speaker information. Notes include the interviewee name, form of communication, and date. A full bibliography citation is generally not required.
When citing AI-generated content, provide in-text information about the AI (including version number), how it was used, the date the content was generated, and the prompt used to generate content. Do not cite AIgenerated content in a bibliography unless it is required, and a URL is publicly available.
The notes and bibliography system uses a bibliography at the end of the paper where the information for the various sources used throughout the paper is contained. Format the bibliography as follows:
Since the notes and bibliography system conveys the citation information of a source both in the note and in the bibliography, there are two distinct formats for writing a citation in notes and bibliography format as shown in the following examples. Note: In 18th Edition, Chicago has advised against the inclusion of publisher location unless contextually necessary for readers.
While Chicago notes that webpage and website citation information may be primarily included in text or in a note, a formal citation may be included in the bibliography, if required.
When citing a published interview, the name of the person being interviewed is listed first. The source or publication type also impacts the elements included and the order of those elements in each citation.
