Subject & Study Guides: Chicago Referencing (17th ed.): Referencing Reference Works

Things to remember

Authors' names :

Footnotes: All authors' names should be First Name, Initial, Surname e.g. Eliza T. Dresang.

Bibliography: First author should be inverted as Surname, First Name, Initial e.g. Burnett, Kathleen. Additional authors should be First Name, Initial,, Surname e.g. Burnett, Kathleen and Eliza T. Dresang.

Editors' names : If you are referencing the whole book, the format for the editors' names should be the same as for an author in both the footnote and the bibliography. If, however, you are referencing a chapter of an edited book the editor's name should be First Name, Initial, Surname. eg. edited by Paul M. Angle and Mary Stewart van Leeuwen

Italics : Only the book title should be in italics. If you are referencing a chapter in a book, the title of the chapter should not be in italics but should be surrounded by quote marks "....".

Capitalization : All major words in titles and subtitles should be capitalized.

Splitting a URL : If your URL needs to be split do not insert a hyphen. Break the URL before a punctuation mark. Do not add a full stop at the end of URL as this may appear to be part of the URL and cause retrieval problems. URL links should not be live/linked, though Word makes them so as a default (to avoid this right click on the live link and select "Remove Hyperlink".)

Long Footnotes & Shortened Footnotes

The referencing examples provided include a Long Footnote, a Shortened Footnote and a Bibliography entry.

The first time you cite a source (book, website, journal article etc.), you should use a Long Footnote.

Any subsequent times you cite that source, you can use a Short Footnote.

If you need assistance with Chicago referencing, please get in touch with the Learning Advisors team for help.

Referencing Entries from Reference Works

This page contains examples of how to reference entries from reference works (e.g. Encyclopedias, Dictionaries).

When using a reference work which lists entries alphabetically, the item (not the volume or page number) should be used preceded by s.v. (sub verbo - under the word)

A reference work entry from a printed source

Long Footnote

1. Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 6th ed, vol. 1 (2007),. s.v. "charette.".

1. Dictionary of Architecture & Construction, 3rd ed. (2000). s.v. "stepped flashing."

Shortened Footnote

2. Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. "charette.".

2. Dictionary of Architecture & Construction, s.v. "stepped flashing."

Bibliography

Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. 6th ed. 2 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.

Dictionary of Architecture & Construction, edited by Cyril M Harris. 3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2000.

A reference work entry from an online source

Long Footnote

1. Merriam-Webster, s.v. "stylobate," accessed July 24, 2019, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stylobate

1. SAH Archipedia, s.v. "Star Apartments," by Carolyn Stewart, accessed May 3, 2019. https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/CA-01-037-0005

Shortened Footnote

2. Merriam-Webster, s.v. "stylobate,"

2. SAH Archipedia, s.v. "Stratosphere Tower,"

Online reference works are not normally cited in Bibliographies (unless you are citing a longer reference entry with a named author (see below). (The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed., sections 14.233, 14.234, p. 858-859).

A Wikipedia entry

Footnote

1. Wikipedia, s.v. "wharenui," last modified July 21, 2019, 03:45, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wharenui

Wikipedia entries are not normally cited in Bibliographies (The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed., section 14.233, p. 858-859).

A more substantial reference entry by a named author

When you have a more substantial reference entry by a named author, it is more appropriate to cite the individual entries by author, in a similar way to a chapter in an edited book.

1) From a print source

Long Footnote

1. Andrew Wilson. "Hayes & Scott," in The Encyclopedia of Australian Architecture, eds. Philip Goad and Julie Willis (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011), 320.

Shortened Footnote

2. Wilson, "Hayes & Scott," 320.

Bibliography

Wilson, Andrew. "Hayes & Scott." In The Encyclopedia of Australian Architecture, edited by Philip Goad and Julie Willis, 320. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011.

2) From an online source

Long Footnote

1. Ben Schrader. "Maori Housing - Te Noho Whare," in Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand, article published September 5, 2013, https://teara.govt.nz/en/maori-housing-te-noho-whare.

Shortened Footnote

2. Schrader, "Maori housing.".

Bibliography

Schrader, Ben. "Maori Housing - Te Noho Whare." In Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Article published September 5, 2013. https://teara.govt.nz/en/maori-housing-te-noho-whare.

Important notes to be aware of

Please be aware of the following important note when using Chicago Referencing (17th ed.)

Note 1: Don't use Ibid in Chicago 17th

In Chicago 16th edition and earlier, it was ok to use Ibid (from the Latin ibidem meaning "in the same place") when you are citing a source that is the same as the immediate previous footnote. In Chicago 17th, this is discouraged. You should use a short footnote (The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed., section 14.34, 759).

Note 2: Don't use the 3-em dash for multiple works by one author

In Chicago 16th edition and earlier, it was ok to use a 3-em dash (------) in your Bibliography list if you had multiple works by one author. In Chicago 17th, you should not do this. Instead, you should list the author's name/s for all bibliography citation entries.