Chicago Style: Author-Date System

In this system, cite sources in the text by author’s last name and year of publication.

In-Text Citations

Each in-text citation matches up with an entry in a reference list, where full bibliographic information is provided.

General Rules

Use only the surname of the author followed by the year of publication. (Winkleman 2009).
Include page, chapter, section, or paragraph numbers if referring to a specific place in the text. (Winkleman 2009, 134).
If using the author’s name as a signal in the sentence, only include the year in parentheses: Winkleman (2009, 134) cited political indifference as the problem.
When citing multiple authors, separate names with a comma and use “and” before the final name: (Winkleman and Kurtine 2009) or (Winkelman, Smith, and Kurtine 2009).

Bibliographies

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 for references.

Formatting Sources

For article, chapter and book titles (and any subtitles), capitalize all words. For journal titles capitalize the same words the journal does.
Titles of books and journals are italicized. Titles of articles, chapters, poems, etc. are placed in quotation marks
If no fixed page numbers are available, cite a section title or a chapter or other number in the text, if any (or simply omit.
For a source that does not list a date of publication or revision, use n.d. (for “no date”) in place of the year, and include an access date.

Electronic Sources

In general, references to sources in electronic formats contain the same elements in the same order as do references to print sources. In addition, provide retrieval information so that a reader can locate the source.

For books consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry
For articles consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database in the reference list entry. Many journal articles list a DOI (Digital Object Identifier). A DOI forms a permanent URL that begins https://doi.org/. This URL is preferable to the URL that appears in your browser’s address bar.

Examples

Article from journal, magazine or newspaper

Electronic Journal Article

Jaeger, Paul T., and Lindsay Sarin. 2016. “All Librarianship is Political: Educate Accordingly.” The Political Librarian: 2 (1): 87-89. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/pollib/vol2/iss1/8.

Online Newspaper Article

Stevens, Harry, Dan Keating, and Kevin Uhrmacher. 2019. “What’s Next in the Trump Impeachment Inquiry?” The Washington Post, October 2, 2019. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/politics/impeachment-calendar/.

eBooks and Print Books

eBook

Brown, Brene. 2012. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead. New York: Gotham Books. ProQuest Ebrary

Entire Book by One Author, Print Version

Klinenberg, Eric. 2018. A 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.

Entire Book by Two or More Authors, Print Version

Bernstein, Carl, and Bob Woodward. 1974. All the President’s Men. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Chapter in an Edited Book, Print Version

Thoreau, Henry David. 2016. “Walking.” In The Making of the American Essay, edited by John D’Agata, 167–95. Minneapolis: Graywolf Press.

Websites

If the year of publication is not available use n.d. for no date.

University of New England Library Services. 2019. “Understanding Copyright.” Accessed May 1, 2019. https://www.library.une.edu.