How to cite in the Chicago Manual of Style referencing?

By Avishek Majumder & Abhinash on February 1, 2019

Chicago Manual of Style referencing or more commonly the Chicago referencing style was incepted in 1906 by the University of Chicago Press (University of Chicago, 2017). It follows two styles: note & Bibliography and the author-date system. Note and bibliography comprise of numerical in-text citations and footnoting bibliography [e.g. Chicago manual of referencing1], and mainly followed by authors of literature, history, and the arts.

The Author-date system, on the other hand, uses the author name as an in-text citation and is mainly followed by authors of sciences and social sciences [e.g. Chicago manual of style referencing, (University of Chicago 2017)]. The most commonly used citation versions are the 16th and the 17th. However, there are a few challenges to this diverse form of referencing style.

Challenges of Chicago Manual of Style Referencing
Challenges of Chicago Manual of Style Referencing

Confusion between the Chicago Manual of Style referencing 16th and 17th style of referenc

The referencing style in Chicago is different in both the 16th and 17th styles. The differences mainly lie in the author-date style. The image below indicates the basic form of author-date referencing in 16th and 17th versions. The challenge is that different universities follow different forms of referencing. According to 17th and 16th version by University of Chicago, (2017), an in-text citation comprises of <curve brackets>author name <space> year <comma><space> page number/numbers<curve brackets>. However, in many universities, an in-text citation comprises of <curve brackets>author name <space> year<curve brackets>. Although, both the formats are correct, it is suggested that the style supported by the University of Chicago must be followed.

Author-date referencing differences
Author-date referencing differences

A similar issue can be observed in the case of a bibliography of the 16th and 17th styles of Chicago. The main issue remains with the presentation of Volume and Issue numbers. According to the University of Chicago, the Author name is followed by the year, the title of the paper, journal name, volume, issue, month/ and DOI number or link. However, in many universities, the trend remains the same except for the style and punctuations used. In many universities, the accessed date of the journal has to be mentioned as shown in the sample reference below. One may have to use the mentioned style of Chicago referencing according to the University guidelines, but the correct format is the one presented by the University of Chicago.

Endnote referencing differences
Endnote referencing differences

Confusing endnote, footnote and author-date style of citation in the Chicago Manual of Style referencing

Endnote referencing, footnote referencing and author-date referencing are three different methods of citations. Endnote referencing is associated with author-date citation style, whereby, the list of cited references is presented in the bibliography at the end of a document. On the other hand, footnote referencing do not comprise the end of the document bibliography, rather placed at the respective pages of the citations.

The following style show footnote referencing in the case of the Chicago Manual of Style Referencing;

Footnote referencing in case of Chicago Manual of Style Referencing
Footnote referencing in case of Chicago Manual of Style Referencing

The following style shows endnote and author-date referencing in the case of Chicago Manual of Style Referencing;

Endnote and author-date referencing
Endnote and author-date referencing

However, the confusion lies with the choice of style of citation. Many universities use endnote referencing, while some use footnote referencing based on the area of study. Both methods seem to be correct and the citation style by the University of Chicago must be followed. One last confusion remains with respect to the arrangement of the citations. Follow the instructions presented in problem 1 to resolve it.

Styles differ with respect to the type of source of reference in the Chicago Manual of Style Referencing

One of the most important challenges of the Chicago Manual of Style Referencing is referencing different types of resources. A document may review literature from journals, books, thesis papers, conference papers, websites, and e-newspapers. In Chicago style, every resource is presented differently. The presentation of citations also varies from one university to another. Lastly, the presentation of citation also differs in the case of endnote and footnote.

The following image indicates the variation of referencing in the case of books.

Referencing in case of books
Referencing in case of books

The following image indicates the variation of referencing in the case of thesis or dissertations.

Referencing in case of thesis or dissertations
Referencing in case of thesis or dissertations

The following figure indicates the variation of referencing in the case of website content.

Referencing in case of website content
Referencing in case of website content

The following image indicates the variation of referencing in the case of newspapers.

Referencing in the case of newspapers
Referencing in the case of newspapers

The method of referencing journal papers is presented in image 2 of the article. These examples of reference are directly from the University of Chicago, and hence reject all other forms of reference. Solving the above-mentioned challenges possible by following the presented samples. For a detailed guideline of using the Chicago Manual of Style Referencing visit its official website.

Key points to remember while
Chicago Manual of Style Referencing

  1. In-text referencing in case of endnote style should mention the page nos. of the resource. Like; (Ahmed 2017, 32) or (Ahmed 2017, 32-55).
  2. The referencing style has changed from the 16th version to 17th version, however, it is recommended that university guidelines are followed for the version, but the style by the University of Chicago must be followed.
  3. Author-date and endnote are the same.
  4. Use different automated referencing tools like Mendeley, Endnote, and Zotero for endnote referencing.
  5. Follow the guidelines of the Chicago Manual of Style Referencing.

References

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