Notes-Bibliography System
The Chicago Style Notes-Bibliography(NB) system uses footnotes or endnotes to cite sources in a text.
In-Text Citations
Include a superscript number at the end of the sentence or clause whenever you reference a source by direct quote, paraphrase, or summary.
The superscript numbers will correspond to a footnote or endnote. Footnotes are added at the end of the page on which the source is referenced; endnotes are compiled at the end of each chapter or at the end of the document.
Notes should be numbered consecutively, beginning with one.
Footnotes, Endotes & Bibliography
Creating Footnotes
At the bottom of the page, the note numbers are full size and followed by a period.
Example: Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.[1]
1. Brene Brown, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead (New York: Gotham Books, 2012), 340.
General Rules
- In Chicago style, the list of works cited is called “Bibliography.”
- Alphabetize the references by author last name or first word of the citation.
- For more than ten authors list the first seven in the reference list, followed by “et al.”
- Use hanging indentation.
- Use a full note the first time you refer to a source, but subsequent citations for that same work can be shortened. A shortened note includes the author last name, title, and page number if applicable. Titles of over four words can be shortened. If there are multiple authors, list the first and use “et al.”
Formatting References
- Italicize the titles of books and journals. Place the titles of articles, chapters, poems, etc. in quotation marks.
- Capitalize all words article, chapter and book titles and subtitles. Capitalize journal titles in the same way as the journal does.
- Cite a section title, chapter, other number in the text, if no fixed page numbers are available. You may also simply omit.
- If there is no publication date listed, use n.d. (no date) and include an access date.
- For multiple authors, list the first author as last name, first name. All subsequent names should be listed as first name last name.
Online Sources
References to sources in electronic formats contain the same elements in the same order as do references to print sources, with the addition of retrieval information so that a reader can locate the source.
- Include a URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry for books consulted online.
- Include a URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry for online articles. Many journal articles list a DOI (Digital Object Identifier). A DOI forms a permanent URL that begins https://doi.org/. A DOI is preferable to the URL that appears in your browser’s address bar and should be used when available.
Examples
Articles
Journal Article
Full note:
1. Thomas L. Turner, “The Marine Sponge Hymeniacidon perlevis is a Globally-Distributed Exotic Species,” Aquatic Invasions 15, no. 4 (2020): 542-561, accessed July 20, 2023, https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/pollib/vol2/iss1/8.
Shortened note:
1. Turner, “Marine Sponge Hymeniacidon,” 545.
Bibliography:
Thomas L. Turner. “The Marine Sponge Hymeniacidon perlevis is a Globally-Distributed Exotic Species,” Aquatic Invasions 15, no. 4 (2020): 542-561. Acessed July 20, 2023, https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/pollib/vol2/iss1/8.
Newspaper or Magazine Article
Full note:
1. Dennis Hoey, “Rare Yellow Lobster Donated to UNE’s Marine Science Center,” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), February 5, 2021, https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/04/rare-yellow-lobster-donated-to-unes-marine-science-center.
Shortened note:
1. Hoey, “Rare Yellow Lobster.”
Bibliography:
Hoey, Dennis. “Rare Yellow Lobster Donated to UNE’s Marine Science Center.” Portland Press Herald (Portland, ME), February 5, 2021. https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/04/rare-yellow-lobster-donated-to-unes-marine-science-center.
Books
Book by One Author (Print Version)
Full note:
1. Eric Klinenberg, Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life. Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life (New York: Broadway Books, 2018), 27-32.
Shortened note:
1. Klinenberg, Palaces for the People, 28.
Bibliography:
Klinenberg, Eric. Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life. Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life. New York: Broadway Books, 2018.
e-book
Full note:
1. Brene Brown, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead (New York: Gotham Books, 2012), 352, http://ebook.yourcloudlibrary.com/library/unelibrary-document_id-ecf95g9.
Shortened note:
1. Brown, Daring Greatly, 352.
Bibliography:
Brown, Brene. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead. New York: Gotham Books, 2012. http://ebook.yourcloudlibrary.com/library/unelibrary-document_id-ecf95g9.
Book by Two or More Authors (Print Version)
Full note:
1. Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, All the President’s Men (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974), 99.
Shortened note:
1. Bernstein and Woodward, All the President’s Men, 99.
Bibliography:
Bernstein, Carl, and Bob Woodward. All the President’s Men. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974.
Chapter in an Edited Book, Print Version
Full Note:
1. Smith, John, “The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity,” In Environmental Challenges in the 21st Century, ed. Laura Johnson and Michael Brown (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2022), 54.
Shortened Note:
1. Smith, “Impact of Climate Change,” 62.
Bibliography:
Smith, John. “The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity.” In Environmental Challenges in the 21st Century, edited by Laura Johnson and Michael Brown, 45-67. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2022.
Webpages
Full note
1. “Copyright & Fair Use,” University of New England Library Services, accessed May 1, 2019, https://www-library-une-edu.une.idm.oclc.org.
Shortened note
1. “Copyright & Fair Use.”
Bibliography
University of New England Library Services. “Copyright & Fair Use.” Accessed May 1, 2019. https://www.library.une.edu.
Film or Television
Full note
1. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey, episode 6, “Deeper, Deeper, Deeper Still,” presented by Neil deGrasse Tyson (Beverly Hills: CA: Twentieth Century Fox, 2014), DVD Video.
Shortened note
2. Cosmos, episode 6.
Bibliography
Tyson, Neil deGrasse, presenter. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. Episode 6, “Deeper, Deeper, Deeper Still.” Beverly Hills: CA: Twentieth Century Fox. 2014. DVD Video.
Images
Full Note
1. Henry R. Robinson, The Political Barbeque, 1834, lithograph on wove paper, 25.5 x 36.6 cm, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs, Washington, D.C., https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/app/item/2008661772/.
Shortened Note
2. Robinson, The Political Barbeque.
Bibliography
Robinson, Henry R. The Political Barbeque. 1834. Lithograph on wove paper, 25.5 x 36.6 cm. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs, Washington, D.C. https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/app/item/2008661772/.
Blog Post
Full Note
1. Jamie Males, “Warming Coral Reefs in the Past, Present, and Future: An Interview with PLOS Climate Authors,” Latitude, March 9, 2022, https://latitude.plos.org/2022/03/warming-reefs/.
Shortened note
Males, “Warming Coral Reefs.”
Bibliography
Males, Jamie, “Warming Coral Reefs in the Past, Present, and Future: An Interview with PLOS Climate Authors.” Latitude, March 9, 2022. https://latitude.plos.org/2022/03/warming-reefs.
Thesis or Dissertation
Full Note
1. Rachel Brill-Lee, “Examining Middle School Core Teacher Knowledge and Practices in Stem Education” (EdD diss., University of New England, 2022), https://dune.une.edu/theses/413/.
Shortened note
Brill-Lee, “Examining Middle School”.
Bibliography
Brill-Lee Rachel. “Examining Middle School Core Teacher Knowledge and Practices in Stem Education.” EdD diss., University of New England, 2022. https://dune.une.edu/theses/413/.
Legal Case
Chicago Notes and Bibliography style recommends following The Bluebook format for citing legal cases. These citations typically only appear in the footnotes, not the bibliography.
1. Bangor Publishing Company et al. v. State of Maine, PENSC-CIV-2021-00013 (Penobscot Superior Court, 2021)
Personal Communication
Personal communications such as letters and emails are not typically included in the bibliography in Chicago Style. Footnotes should appear as:
1. Steven Miller, In email to the author, July 19, 2023.
Questions & Help
If you have questions on this, or another, topic, contact a librarian for help!