1. Chicago’s Author-Date References Formatting and Style Guide
Welcome to “Chicago’s Author-Date References Formatting and Style Guide.” This PowerPoint presentation is designed to introduce your students to the basics of Chicago’s author-date references formatting and style. You might want to supplement the presentation with more detailed information posted on Purdue OWL

2. What is Chicago?
The University of Chicago’s The Chicago Manual of Style, sixteenth edition, is a reference book that covers the publishing process, style and usage, and two systems of documentation: author-date references and notes and bibliography. It is geared toward publishing professionals and is the source of documentation guidelines in this presentation. Kate L. Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, seventh edition, presents Chicago style for students and researchers. It is the source of formatting guidelines in this presentation. Though the two texts mirror one another in the majority of their recommendations, Turabian’s text provides more specific standards for students that would otherwise be regulated by individual journals in the field.

3. What does Chicago regulate?
Chicago regulates:
Stylistics and document format
In-text citations (parenthetical)
End-of-text citations (references)
This slide presents three basic areas regulated by Chicago that students need to be aware of—stylistics and document format, in-text citations (parenthetical), and end-of-text citations (references). The following slides provide detailed explanations regarding each area.

4. Significant Changes 15th → 16th ed.
Already familiar with the 15th ed. Chicago Manual of Style? Visit about16_rules.html to review a list of significant changes affecting
Titles that end in question marks or exclamation marks
Dividing URLs over a line
Names like iPod
Titles with quotations
Punctuation of foreign languages in an English context
Capitalization of “web” and “Internet”
Access dates
Classical references
Legal and public document references
This “Chicago’s Notes and Bibliography Formatting and Style Guide” PowerPoint presentation reflects the most recent guidelines available in the 16th ed. Chicago Manual of Style; however, if you are already familiar with The Chicago Manual of Style in its 15th ed. and/or if desire information about updates to style and formatting guidelines not explicitly covered here, you can find more information at

5. Overarching Rules
“Regardless of the convention being followed, the primary criterion of any source citation is sufficient information either to lead readers directly to the sources consulted or, to positively identify the sources used ” (The University of Chicago 2010, 655).
“Ethics, copyright laws, and courtesy to readers require authors to identify the sources of direct quotation or paraphrases and of any facts or opinions not generally known or easily checked” (The University of Chicago 2010, 655). In other words, regulation of stylistics and document format, in-text citations, and end-of-text citations is important for avoiding plagiarism, building author credibility, and facilitating scholastic discourse, not necessarily in that order. Consistency and readability are of upmost importance in this regard.
Many instructors who require their students to use Chicago formatting and citation style have small exceptions to different Chicago rules the same way that journals in the field may bend some of the more formal formatting and style regulations to better suit their needs. These instructor or journal-specific guidelines should always supersede the more general recommendations of the manuals.
“Your instructor, department, or university may have guidelines that differ from the advice offered here. If so, those guidelines take precedence” (Turabian 2007, 374). 5

6. Chicago Style: Quotations
Direct quotations should be integrated into your text in a grammatically correct way.
Square brackets add clarifying words, phrases, or punctuation to direct quotations, when necessary.
“Ellipses,” or three spaced periods, indicate the omission of words from a quoted passage.
Include additional punctuation when applicable.
The first word in a direct quotation should be capitalized if it begins a sentence, even if it was not capitalized in the original quotation (and vice versa). This can be done “silently” (without demarcation) if it does not affect the meaning of the quoted material; otherwise, indicate the change by placing square brackets around the newly capitalized or lowercased letter.
Use square brackets and ellipses carefully as borrowed material should always reflect the meaning of the original source; therefore, before altering a direct quotation, ask yourself if you might just as easily paraphrase or weave one or more shorter quotations into the text.

7. Quotations, con’t
“Sic” is italicized and put in square brackets immediately after a word that is misspelled or otherwise wrongly used in an original quotation.
Italic type can be used for emphasis but should only be used so infrequently.
Do not use ALL CAPS for emphasis.
When you use italics for emphasis within a quotation, you have to let the reader know the italics were not a part of the original quotation.
“Emphasis added,” “emphasis mine,” “italics added,” or “italics mine” are all acceptable.
“Sic” is usually only necessary when the mistake is more likely to be charged to the transcriptionist than to the author of the original quotation.
Phrases such as “emphasis added” should be placed either in a note or in parentheses following the quotation in the text itself.

8. Quotations, con’t
A colon (formal) or a comma (informal) can be used to introduce a direct quotation.
Quotations within quotations are enclosed in single quotation marks.
When the entire quotation is a quotation within a quotation, only one set of double quotation marks is necessary.
A title is treated with quotation marks or italics based on the type of work it is.
Book and periodical titles (titles of larger works) get italicized
Article, chapter, and shorter work titles get enclosed in double quotation marks.
Both in the text itself and on the references page, a title is treated with quotation marks or italics based on the type of work it is.

9. Chicago Style: Capitalization
Use headline-style capitalization for titles in the text, notes, and bibliography.
Capitalize the first word of the title and subtitle and all important words, including proper nouns.
Apply sentence-style capitalization by request.
Follow the guidelines above but exclude the important words that are not proper nouns.
Otherwise, take a minimalist approach to capitalization.
Lowercase terms used to describe periods, for example, except in the case of proper nouns (e.g., “the colonial period,” vs. “the Victorian era”).
Although Chicago takes a minimalist approach to capitalization (or what they call “down” style),The Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.) dedicates an entire chapter to capitalization guidelines. To discover the various areas of capitalization that Chicago regulates, view the index to chapter 8, “Names and Terms,” at

10. General Format Requirements
Chicago recommends that you:
print on standard-sized paper (8.5” x 11”),
use 1” – 1.5” margins on all sides,
choose a readable typeface (e.g., Times New Roman) at no less than 10 pt. (preferably, 12 pt.) ,
double-space text, with one space after punctuation between sentences, and
number pages beginning with Arabic numeral 1 on the first page of text.
This slide presents the general format of a Chicago-styled paper:
The text should be typed and printed on standard-sized paper (8.5” x 11”) and should include consistent margins of no less than 1” and no greater than 1.5” on all sides. Chicago recommends a “readable” font, such as Times New Roman or Palatino, and prefers that works be written in 12 pt. (although they will accept 10 pt.). All text in the paper is to be double-spaced with the exception of the following items, which are to be single-spaced: block quotations, table titles and figure captions, footnotes or endnotes, and bibliography or reference list entries. Only one space should follow end-of-sentence punctuation. Page numbers should begin on the first page of text (not on the title page) and should be written in Arabic numerals beginning with “1.” Page numbers can be placed in one of three locations: flush right in the header, centered in the header, or centered in the footer. Note that formatting requirements for theses and dissertations, in particular, may vary.

11. No page numbers on the title page!
Title is centered one-third of the way down the page and written in ALL CAPS.
Name + course + date follows several lines later, also centered.
This slide visually presents Chicago format for a title page, which consists of two major sections: title and author information.
Titles should be centered one-third of the way down the page and written in all capital letters. When subtitles apply, end the title line with a colon and follow with the subtitle on the subsequent line (also written in all capital letters). Several lines later, students should include their name, full course information, and a complete “month-day-year” date on separate, single-spaced lines. Instructors may require additional information, and it is also acceptable practice to place the title on the first page of text.
No headers or footers are included on the title page, including any page numbers. Page numbers begin with Arabic numeral 1 flush right in the header, centered in the header, or centered in the footer beginning with the first page of actual text.

12. Main Body (Text) Number the first text page as page number 1.
Type all text double-spaced (no break between sections).
Identify the sources you use in the paper in parentheses and on the References page.
Format tables and figures.
This slide provides the basic reminders about formatting the main body text.
Double-space all text in the paper, with the following exceptions: Single-space block quotations as well as table titles and figure captions. Single-space notes and reference page entries internally, but leave an extra line space externally between said entries.

13. References Page
Center the title, “References,” at the top of the page. Do not bold, italicize, or enclose in quotation marks.
Single-space reference entries internally. Double-space entries externally.
Flush left the first line of the entry and indent subsequent lines.
Order entries alphabetically by the authors’ last names.
Label the first page of your back matter, your comprehensive list of sources cited, “References” or “Works Cited.” Two blank lines should be left between “References” and your first entry. One blank line should be left between remaining entries, which should be listed in letter-by-letter alphabetical order according to the first word in each entry. Sources you consulted but did not directly cite may or may not be included (consult your instructor). Entries are formatted very similarly to those in Chicago’s Notes-Bibliography style, but the date is moved immediately after the author’s name.
For specific information about entries in the reference list, go to

14. References: Basics Author-Date References Style
Used by those in the physical, natural, and social sciences.
Requires using parenthetical citation to identify sources as they show up in the text.
Include each source that shows up in the text as an entry on the references page at the end of the paper.
Chicago’s Author-Date References style is recommended for those in the physical, natural, and social sciences and requires using parenthetical citation to identify sources as they show up in the text. Each source that shows up in the text must have a corresponding entry in the references list at the end of the paper. Updates to Chicago are posted on the Chicago website You may also reference the Purdue OWL:

15. References Basics, con’t
Invert authors’ names (last name first followed by first name: Agamben, Giorgio).
Follow with date of publication.
Alphabetize reference list entries by the last name of the first author of each work.
Use headline style capitalization for titles.
Italicize titles of longer works such as books and journals.
Put quotation marks around the titles of shorter works such as journal articles or essays in edited collections.
This slide provides basic rules related to creating references entries.

16. References: Basics, con’t
Publishers’ names are generally written out in full but may be abbreviated.
Sources you consulted but did not directly cite may or may not be included (consult your instructor).
Some sources are traditionally left off of references pages, such as personal communications; however, it’s better to ask permission than forgiveness (consult your instructor).

17. Making the References List
Chicago is a complex system of citation. When compiling the reference list, the strategy below might be useful:
Identify the type of source: Is it a book? A journal article? A webpage?
Find a sample of citing this type of source in the textbook or in the OWL Chicago Guide:
“Mirror” the sample.
Make sure that the entries are listed in the alphabetical order and the subsequent lines are indented (Recall References: Basics).

18. References: Multiple Authors
For multiple authors, use the conjunction “and,” not the ampersand: &.
For two to three authors or editors,
write out all names in the order they appear on the title page of the source.
For four to ten authors,
write out all names on the references page but use just the first author’s name and “et al.” (not italicized) in the text itself.
For multiple authors, use the conjunction “and”—not the ampersand (&)— both in the text itself as well as on the references page. Only invert the first author’s name on the references page.

19. References: One Author, Multiple Entries
The 3-em dash (—) should be used to replace authors or editors’ names who hold multiple, successive entries on a references page. Arrange such entries chronologically, oldest publication to newest publication.
Foucault, Michel. 1984a. “The Means of Correct Training.” In The Foucault Reader, edited by Paul Rabinow, New York: Pantheon.
—. 1984b. “Panopticism.” In The Foucault Reader, edited by Paul Rabinow, New York: Pantheon,
—. 1984c. “What is an Author?” In The Foucault Reader, edited by Paul Rabinow, New York: Pantheon.
—. 1984d. “What is Enlightenment?” In The Foucault Reader, edited by Paul Rabinow, New York: Pantheon.
Note that multiple entries to the same edited collection can be cross-referenced. See section of The Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.).

20. References: Editors
Identify editors and translators and the like (on the references page only) by spelling out the phrases “edited by” and “translated by.”
Only capitalize these phrases if they follow a period.
When the editor’s or translator’s name takes the place of the author’s name, follow the name with a comma and the appropriate abbreviation for the noun form: ed., eds., trans., etc.
No author or editor? Begin that references page entry with the title of the source.
The references page citation for a work with an editor would look as follows:
Latour, Bruno. 2005a. “From Realpolitik to Dingpolitik or How to Make Things Public.” In Making Things Public: Atmospheres of Democracy, edited by Bruno Latour and Peter Weibel, Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
For additional examples of author-date references citations for a variety of media, please see especially the CMS Author Date Sample paper,
When it comes to beginning entries with the title of the source, note that an initial article is ignored in alphabetization.

21. References: Journal Articles
Journal articles are usually cited by volume and issue number and date of publication.
When pagination is consecutive across a volume, the issue number and/or month or season can be omitted.
The following are equally acceptable formatting options, with differences bolded:
Ede, Lisa and Andrea A. Lunsford “Collaboration and Concepts of Authorship.” PMLA 116 (March):
Ede, Lisa and Andrea A. Lunsford “Collaboration and Concepts of Authorship.” PMLA 116 (2):
Ede, Lisa and Andrea A. Lunsford “Collaboration and Concepts of Authorship.” PMLA 116:
Differences are bolded here only to call attention to the equally acceptable formatting options. Do not bold volume, issue, and/or page numbers in your paper.

22. References: Electronic Sources
For electronic journal articles and other web sources, DOIs (Digital Object Identifiers) are preferred to URLs (Uniform resource Locators).
If you must use a URL, look for the “stable” version assigned by the journal.
DOIs are to be prefaced with the letters “doi” and a colon.
While DOIs are assigned to journal articles in any medium, you only need include a DOI when you accessed the electronic version of the source.
An example of a references page entry with stable url is as follows:
Ede, Lisa and Andrea A. Lunsford “Collaboration and Concepts of Authorship.” PMLA 116 (March):

23. References: Dates
No access date is required to be reported for electronic sources.
They can’t be verified; therefore, only resort to using access dates when date of publication is unavailable.
If you cannot ascertain the publication date of a printed work, use the abbreviation “n.d.”

24. Author-Date References Style: In-text Basics
Each time a source is used in the text, it must be cited in parentheses.
Parenthetical citation comprises the author’s last name, the publication date, and the page number of the source, when applicable.
Ultimately for Foucault, “Power was the great network of political relationships among all things,” (Thomas 2008, 153), and Foucault (1984a) represents a powerful figure in postmodern thought because he asserts that power is what produces our reality.
Keep in mind that when a source is listed on the references page by editor or translator instead of author, you do not include abbreviations such as ed. or trans. in the in-text citation.
Note that parenthetical citations usually follow direct quotations, but it is acceptable to place them before such a quotation if it allows the date to be placed next to the author’s name.

25. In-text Basics, con’t Formatting parenthetical citations
Do not include punctuation between the author’s last name and the year.
DO place a comma between the year and page numbers when used in parenthetical citation.
Place author-date citations before a mark of punctuation whenever possible.

26. In-text Basics, con’t
When an author’s name appears in the text, the date of the work cited should follow, even when articulated in the possessive.
Also note that Chicago distinguishes between authors and works.
While “in Foucault 1984a” is technically permissible, “Foucault’s (1984a) work suggests . . .” is preferred.

27. No Author? No Page Numbers?
When a source has no identifiable author, cite it by its title, both on the references page and in shortened form (up to four keywords from that title) in parenthetical citations throughout the text.
Use italic or roman type as needed.
If you cannot name a specific page number, you have other options:
section (sec.)
equation (eq.)
volume (vol.)
note (n)
It may be helpful to cite specific chapters or paragraphs. In addition, in the case of electronic works in particular, you may have to create your own signposts: e.g., (Lyotard 1984, under “Modernism”).

28. Same Source, Same Paragraph
When the same page(s) of the same source are cited more than once in a single paragraph, you need only cite the source (in full) after the last reference or at the end of the paragraph.
When the same source but different page numbers are referenced in the same paragraph, include a full citation upon the first reference and provide only page numbers thereafter.
To see this guideline in action, please see page two of the CMS Author Date Sample Paper on the OWL:

29. Same Source, Same Year
When you have several sources by the same author written in the same year, list them alphabetically by title on your references page and append the letters a, b, c, etc., to the year of publication.
Retain those letters in text.
In “What is Enlightenment,” Foucault (1984d) writes, Foucault (1984a), too, questions . . .

30. One sentence, Two Sources
A semicolon should be used to separate two or more references in a single parenthetical citation.
A semicolon is also used to separate a citation and a relevant but short comment in a single parenthetical citation.
(Agamben 2008, ; political issues are addressed here)

31. Caveat
Chicago’s Author-Date References style requires that each time you refer to or otherwise use source material in your paper, you have to include a parenthetical citation for the source. But . . .
Be wary of letting your citation practices become redundant and intrusive
Still, it’s generally better to over cite than to under cite.

32. In-text Citations: Formatting Quotations
A prose quotation of five or more lines should be “blocked.”
Single space, use no quotation marks, and leave an extra line space immediately before and after.
Indent the entire quotation .5” (the same as you would the start of a new paragraph).
The citations for block quotations begin after the final punctuation of the quotation.
No period is required either
before or after the opening
or closing parentheses.

33. Supplementary Notes
Footnotes or endnotes can be used to supplement the Author-Date References style to provide additional relevant commentary and/or to cite sources that do not readily lend themselves to the Author-Date References system.
In the text, note numbers are superscripted. In the notes themselves, note numbers are full sized, not raised, and followed by a period. Superscripting numbers in both places is also acceptable.
Note numbers should be placed at the end of the clause or sentence to which they refer and should be placed after any and all punctuation except the dash. Note numbers should also begin with “1” and follow consecutively throughout a given paper, article, or chapter.
The first line of a footnote is indented .5” from the left margin. Subsequent lines within a note should be formatted flush left. Leave an extra line space between notes. Citations within such notes are treated the same as they would be in the text itself.
To see “notes” in action, please visit the CMS NB Sample Paper (

34. Chicago Headings
Chicago has an optional system of five heading levels.
Chicago Headings
Level
Format 1
Centered, Boldface or Italic Type, Headline-style Capitalization 2
Centered, Regular Type, Headline-style Capitalization 3
Flush Left, Boldface or Italic Type, Headline-style Capitalization 4
Flush left, roman type, sentence-style capitalization 5
Run in at beginning of paragraph (no blank line after), boldface or italic type, sentence-style capitalization, terminal period.
Longer papers may require sections, or subheadings. Chicago allows you to devise your own format but privileges consistency. Put an extra line space before and after subheads and avoid ending them with periods.

35. Chicago Headings: An Example
Here is an example of the five-level heading system:

36. Tables and Figures
Position tables and figures after the paragraph in which they’re described.
Cite the source of table and figure information with a “source line” at the bottom of the table or figure.
Source lines are introduced by the word Source(s), followed by a colon, and end with a period.
Cite a source as you would for parenthetical citation, minus the parentheses, and include full information in an entry on your References page.
Acknowledge reproduced or adapted sources appropriately (i.e., data adapted from; map by )
If the table does not fit the remainder of a page, continue the text on that page and place the table at the beginning of the next page. If they table is only “marginally relevant” or too large to fit on a single page, append it.
In bibliography style, table and figure source work can be cited as a full note. In this case, unless the source is used elsewhere, an additional entry need not be added to the Bibliography.
If your work is to be published, you may need to obtain formal permission to reproduce tables and figures that are protected by copyright. Consult chapter 4 of the 16th ed. Chicago Manual of Style.

37. Tables and Figures, con’t
Every table should have a number and (a short and descriptive) title.
Flush left on the line above the table.
Table 1. Title without a terminal period
Every figure should have a number and a caption.
Flush left on the line below the figure.
Figure 2. Caption with or without a terminal period.
Number tables and figures separately, in the order you mention them in the text.
In the text, identify tables and figures by number (“in figure 3”) rather than by location (“below”).
When a figure has a source line, put it at the end of the caption.
For more information on formatting Chicago-style tables and figures, see chapter 26 of Kate L. Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (7th ed.).

38. Additional Chicago Resources
The Purdue OWL
Purdue Writing HEAV 226
Composition textbooks
The University of Chicago Press’s The Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.)
Kate L. Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (7th ed.).
Chicago’s website

39. The End Writer and Designer: Jessica Clements
Based on slide designs from the OWL “APA Formatting and Style Guide” PowerPoint by Jennifer Liethen Kunka, contributed to by Muriel Harris, Karen Bishop, Bryan Kopp, Matthew Mooney, David Neyhart, and Andrew Kunka and revised by Elizabeth Angeli (2011) and Elena Lawrick (2008).