Chicago citation style

A guide to citing sources using the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition

General rules

A complete reference should always contain enough information to enable any reader to locate the book, either physically or digitally.

In a note, state the author's full name in natural name order, starting with the first name (e.g., Lisa Moore). In a bibliography entry, invert the first author's name, starting with the last name (e.g., Moore, Lisa). Subsequent author names are written in natural name order.

Journal articles with 1 author

Note format:

11. Firstname Lastname, "Article Title," Journal Title Volume no., Issue no. (Year of publication): Page.

Bibliography entry format:

Lastname, Firstname. "Article Title." Journal Title Volume no., Issue no. (Year of publication): Pages.

Sample note:

11. Gordon Cox, "A Newfoundland Christmas Caroling Tradition," Folk Music Journal 3, no. 3 (1977): 249.

Sample bibliography entry:

Cox, Gordon. "A Newfoundland Christmas Caroling Tradition." Folk Music Journal 3, no. 3 (1977): 242-60.

Journal articles with 2-3 authors

List authors in the same order that they appear in the source. Separate author names with a comma and use the conjunction "and" before the final author's name.

In the bibliography entry, only the first author’s name is inverted, and all other author names are written in natural order, beginning with the first name (14.76).

Sample note:

1. Ian D. Parkman, Alan Krause, and Samantha Pires, "The Diamond Model of Authentic Green Marketing: Evidence From the Sustainable Architecture Industry," Business and Society Review 123, no. 1 (2018): 92.

Sample bibliography entry:

Parkman, Ian D., Alan Krause, and Samantha Pires. "The Diamond Model of Authentic Green Marketing: Evidence From the Sustainable Architecture Industry." Business and Society Review 123, no. 1 (2018): 83-118.

Journal articles with 4-10 authors

In the note, cite only the name of the first author followed by "et al."

In the bibliography entry, include all authors' names. List authors in the same order in which they appear within the source. Only the first author’s name is inverted in the bibliography, and all other author names are written in natural order, beginning with the first name (14.76).

Sample note:

12. Ben Hawkins et al., “The Road to Damascus,” Carnivale 2, no. 13 (2005): 18.

Sample bibliography entry:

Hawkins, Ben, Justin Crowe, Clayton Jones, Rita Sue Dreifuss, and Apollonia Bojakshiya. “The Road to Damascus.” Carnivale 2, no. 13 (2005): 1-24.

Journal articles with more than 10 authors

In your note, cite only the name of the first author followed by "et al." In your bibliography, list the first seven authors’ names, followed by “et al.” (14.76).

Sample note:

13. Malcolm Reynolds et al., "The Browncoats Rise Again: The Turning Point in the Unification War," Mutant Enemy 9, no. 20 (2002): 14.

Sample bibliography entry:

Reynolds, Malcolm, Zoe Washburne, Hoban Washburne, Inara Serra, Kalyee Frye, Jayne Cobb, Shepherd Book, et al. "The Browncoats Rise Again: The Turning Point in the Unification War." Mutant Enemy 9, no. 20 (2002): 1-14.

Journal articles (online)

Cite an online journal article the same as you would a print journal article (14.167 - 14.174) but include a DOI at the end of a note and bibliography entry, followed by a period.

If DOI is not available, provide a URL of the journal article, followed by a period. A stable URL is preferable to the URL in your browser's address bar.

If you've accessed an article through a library database, name the database; do not use a library database URL.

Sample note:

14. Pierre Pepin, Eugene Colbourne, and Gary Maillet, "Seasonal Patterns in Zooplankton Community Structure on the Newfoundland and Labrador Shelf," Progress in Oceanography 91, no. 3 (2011): 280, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2011.01.003.

Sample bibliography entry:

Pepin, Pierre, Eugene Colbourne, and Gary Maillet. "Seasonal Patterns in Zooplankton Community Structure on the Newfoundland and Labrador Shelf." Progress in Oceanography 91, no. 3 (2011): 273-285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2011.01.003.‌

Chicago style does not recommend that access dates be cited for electronic sources (14.12), but certain publishers, disciplines, or instructors may require this information. If that is the case, the date of retrieval should be placed directly before the DOI or the URL. Access dates should be written as follows: (14.176)

Sample note:

Sample bibliography entry:

Magazine articles

For online articles, include the URL (or DOI, if available) at the end of the citation. If you've accessed it through a library database, name the database; do not use a library database URL. If there are no page numbers, in the note, identify the location by adding a description (like a paragraph number, heading, or section description).

Like newspaper articles, it is usually sufficient to cite magazines in notes, and to omit magazine citations from the bibliography (see section 14.198).

Sample note:

15. Harry Wilson, “When Cod Was King,” Canadian Geographic, December 2013, 32.

16. Frank Moher, "Son of the Rock," Backofthebook.ca: Canada's Online Magazine, October 11, 2008, para. 5, http://backofthebook.ca/2008/10/11/son-of-the-rock/331/.

Newspaper articles

Omit page numbers for newspapers. For online newspaper articles, include a URL (or DOI, if available) at the end of the citation.

Newspaper articles are typically only cited in notes, and are omitted from the bibliography (14.198).

Sample note:

17. Gordon Pitts, "The Fishery is Dead; Long Live the Fishery," Globe and Mail, February 18, 2008.