Guide to Referencing and Citation

The following guidance on referencing and citation has been assembled by the History Faculty Library for Postgraduate and Undergraduate students.

This guide was last updated on 22/11/2022.

A PDF version of the below information can be found at the following link: 

Contents

  1. General Guidance
    1. Choice of Styles
    2. Citation/Reference Management Software
    3. Referencing and Plagiarism
    4. Footnote References
    5. Bibliography
      1. Non-English Languages
      2. Abbreviation of US States
  2. Quick Citation Guide
  3. Detailed Citation Guide
    1. Examples: Secondary Works
      1. Book
      2. Chapter in a Book
      3. Journal Articles
      4. Theses and Other Unpublished Material
    2. Examples: Primary Sources
      1. Books or Parts of a Book
      2. Manuscripts and Archives
      3. Official Government Papers, Parliamentary Papers and Debates
      4. Newspapers
      5. The Bible and Ancient Works
      6. Microform
      7. Visual and Audio-Visual Material
      8. Interviews/Oral History
      9. Web Content

General Guidance

Students are free to use the Oxford History Faculty style, as outlined in this guide, or one of these approved standard international styles:

The only absolute rule is that YOU MUST BE CONSISTENT in the style you use: once you have adopted a style for a thesis or article, use only that style throughout that particular work.

The choice between styles revolves around whether you wish to automate your footnotes and bibliography: the styles listed above are commonly available in citation management software, which enables you to import references automatically conforming to your chosen style. This involves some upfront investment in learning how to use the package. Using the Faculty style, on the other hand – or indeed adopting any of the approved styles for manual use – involves no initial electronic set-up, in that you enter all your references and bibliography yourself. But this means you must take responsibility for accuracy and consistency and thus familiarize yourself initially with both the broad norms of the style and its fine detail.

Note also that citations for some materials, especially archival sources or official publications, are not easily recorded in citation management software and may have to be added manually, even when many or most of your references are handled electronically. For these purposes you could use the guidance below, or you could adapt this to the main style you are using.

The choice between automatic and manual is entirely yours –as long as the results of whatever you do are consistent. Postgraduates are perhaps more likely to want to invest in learning a citation package, and are also more likely to have to use different styles: editors and publishers usually specify their own style for any particular work (such as conference proceedings and articles); this also means that, in time, you are likely to come across situations where you need to enter references manually.

Whatever you do, it is important that you take responsibility for your own practice. There are penalties for inadequate presentation, which includes culpable inconsistency in citation practice. However, you will not be penalized for the odd slip, as long as you are using or adapting a style with broad consistency. Please do not, therefore, ask Librarians, Tutors and Supervisors for advice about referencing individual items. Supervisors will point out if your practice is inadequate in general, but cannot be expected to scrutinize every last comma and bracket.

Citation or Reference management software allows you to:

  • collect references from a variety of sources such as SOLO, COPAC, Historical Abstracts, etc.
  • store references in a web account or on your desktop
  • organise & sort references
  • add notes to your references
  • link to full text, web pages and documents
  • cite your references in footnotes and create bibliographies

The software usually allows you to import and synchronise citations while writing in e.g. Word. Therefore you only need to update a citation in your citation database once. Please note that you will still need to manually edit citations to archival material as none of the software packages handle such complex material well. Bear in mind also that you will have to invest time in tidying up imported citations. Once that is done, however, you can apply and re-apply a variety of styles with relative ease in order to swiftly format the bulk of standard primary and secondary citations.

The most commonly used software are:

To help decide which suits you best, check out the Comparison Tables. Bodleian Libraries and IT Services offer termly courses on choosing and using citation management software: http://libguides.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/reference-management/workshops.

The Bodleian Libraries have also subscribed to Cite Them Right, an online referencing tools which gives examples and generates citations from a choice of 7 referencing systems for print and electronic formats. The referencing systems include MLA, MHRA, and Chicago. Citations can be created for a very diverse range of sources, including books, journals, digital resources and websites, audiovisual material, unpublished material (theses, manuscripts, etc.), financial & scientific reports, genealogical sources (wills, censuses, etc.), legal material, government and other official publications, and other forms of communication sources (email, Twitter, graffiti, etc.). Note that “Manuscripts” are located in Book > More books.

The essential purpose of referencing is to enable readers to identify the sources of information and ideas you have acquired from elsewhere. This is so that they can assess exactly what you have contributed to your work, and also so that you avoid plagiarism. Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement. All published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form, is covered under this definition. Plagiarism may be intentional, reckless, or unintentional. Under the examination regulations, intentional or reckless plagiarism is a disciplinary offence. Unintentional plagiarism may be treated as bad practice and lead to a reduction in marks. You are strongly advised to read the section on plagiarism in your Course Handbook if you have not already done so.

Footnotes must be reasonably comprehensive, to pin down everything you have used which is not your own idea or argument; however, commonly accepted information (‘the Normans conquered England in 1066’) and quotations used for literary purposes do not need referencing.

References must also be precise and accurate, so that a reader can get back to the source of the information or argument you are citing, right down to the specific page of a specific edition. Footnotes should also be concise, not least because, in many cases, they count towards the word-limit. Avoid putting into footnotes additional information: if you can’t incorporate it into the text, then you should cut it altogether. That said, occasionally you may need to explain briefly in a footnote how the information in the text is derived from the sources you cite in the footnote.

The style of references should be consistent throughout any piece of work. Each publisher or journal will have its own conventions, which will probably differ from the following. For submissions forOxford History degrees, itis important to learn the conventions below, right down to specific details of what to put in italics or quotation marks and where commas and brackets go. There are examples of many different kinds of citation you might need to make beyond the basic ones, but you may easily come across an instance not covered here: in that case, be consistent with the broad style -norms, and ensure that the reader could find the relevant item; but there is no need to contact staff for specific guidance, in that you will not be penalized if your style is broadly consistent.

Give a reference in its full form in the first footnote in which you cite it and abbreviate it thereafter. Notes should be printed at the foot of the page in single spacing. Footnote numbers should begin a new series with each chapter. Footnote numbers in the text should follow punctuation, and normally come at the end of a sentence. They should be superior and not bracketed. Footnotes end with a full stop.

Footnotes count towards the word limit in the following assessments:

  • Undergraduate Theses and Extended Essays
  • Masters' Dissertations and Assessed Essays
  • DPhil Theses

Footnotes do not count towards the word limit in the following assessments:

  • Undergraduate Portfolio of Essays (History of the British Isles)

 

A bibliography lists all the works you have used in preparing your dissertation, thesis or essay. This would include all the sources you have cited as well as any background reading, even of works you have not directly cited in your text.

The bibliography should normally be divided into:

A Primary Sources

  1. Manuscripts and Archives
  2. Printed
  3. Electronic (not including material that is also in hard copy)

B Secondary Material

  1. Books and Articles
  2. Unpublished Theses
  3. Websites (not including material in the above categories)

The category is dictated by the original form of the work, not the form in which you read it. Journal articles you have read online nevertheless go in B.1 (even if the journal is no longer actually printed). Electronic material appears in A3 and B3 if it exists only in electronic form, e.g. a News website, YouTube interviews, podcasts, blogs, etc. However, you must state in your bibliography where you read a book or article online, using the unique Digital Object Identifier (DOI) where provided. (For examples, see below on the relevant page; and see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_object_identifier.)

A1 Manuscript and archival sources: make an entry for each library or repository, arranged alphabetically by the location (city or town), which opens each entry. Under each repository you make an indented alphabetical list of the MSS or archive-classes you have consulted: cite both the call numbers which will enable anyone to identify those items, and the title or nature of the book or document. If you have used a work which is only one part of a MS, identify the range of folios on which it is found. If you have been through whole classes of documents these can be cited collectively rather than listing each individual document, even if you have only cited a subset of the whole. However, if you have only used a small number from a run of documents, you may wish to list and identify them individually.

A2 Printed primary sources are listed alphabetically by surname of the contemporary author, or by the first word of the title of the work (ignoring the articles ‘The’, ‘A’, ‘An’ or their non-English equivalents) in the case of anonymous works or author-less collections. Titles go in italics. Modern editors and translators of primary material always follow the title and ‘ed.’/’trans.’. This is followed by publication information, at least the place and date of publication. The name and number of the series in which a work appears may go after the editor, in roman (normal) type, with the number and date, and without the place.

A3 Electronic material which does not exist in hard copy is cited by its title (normal – ‘roman’ – type in inverted commas), URL and the date of last access (brackets). For guidance how to cite electronic Legal Deposit ebooks which lack pagination, please see https://libguides.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/eld-explained/citing.

B1 Printed secondary works are listed alphabetically by the surname of the (first) author or editor; initials or forename(s) follow, then the title. Titles use capitals for all but the little words (of, etc); titles of books and journals go in italics, and those of chapters and articles are in roman type within single inverted commas. Book titles are followed by publication information: always the place and year of publication in brackets, plus number of volumes and which edition where relevant. Articles are followed by name of the journal followed by the volume and issue number and date. Chapters are followed by the editor(s) and title of the book in which they appear, in the former case, in the latter the editor and title of the book; then the page-range of the chapter or article.

An extended dash or similar typographical device may be used instead of repeating an author’s name for subsequent works by the same author. In such cases the works should be arranged chronologically by date of publication; works by an author alone precede those written jointly with others.

B2 Unpublished theses are treated like articles in that after the author they use roman type within single inverted commas; the information in brackets then identifies the university, the degree, and the date. If a thesis has been read online, via EThOS or a university’s own electronic deposit, this does not need to be stated. If a thesis has been read in hard copy elsewhere than the university of origin, then the place of deposit should be stated (e.g. ‘copy in possession of Dr Benjamin Thompson’); this is more likely to be true of Masters or undergraduate theses.

B3 Websites and other electronic secondary material which do not exist in hard-copy form are cited by title, URL and date of last access.

Bibliography-entries are not followed by a full-stop, whereas footnotes always are.

Note that Illustrations are listed separately after the contents, not in the Bibliography. See the main Guidance on Presentation.

In the examples below, where a date of last online access is required, this is placed in brackets at the end of the entry.

Names: For guidance how to cite foreign names, see Chapter 6 in New Oxford Style Manual (3rd edn, Oxford, 2016).

For abbreviations of US states: e.g. (New Haven, CT, 2016)

U.S. State Abbreviation U.S. State Abbreviation U.S. State Abbreviation U.S. State Abbreviation
Alabama AL Indiana IN Nebraska NE South Carolina SC
Alaska AK Iowa IA Nevada

NV

 South Dakota SD
Arizona AZ Kansas KS New Hampshire NH Tennessee TN
Arkansas AR Kentucky KY New Jersey NJ Texas TX
California CA Louisiana LA New Mexico NM Utah UT
Colorado CO Maine ME New York NY Vermont VT
Connecticut CT Maryland MD North Carolina NC Virginia VA
Delaware DE Massachusetts MA North Dakota ND Washington WA
Florida FL Michigan MI Ohio OH Washington, DC DC
Georgia GA Minnesota MN Oklahoma OK Wisconsin WI
Hawaii HI Mississippi MS Oregon OR Wyoming WY
Idaho ID Missouri MO Pennsylvania PA    
Illinois IL Montana MT Rhode Island RI    

Quick Citation Guide

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnote
Book with one author Dickens, A. G., Lollards and Protestants in the Diocese of York, 15089-1558 (London, 1959)

A. G. Dickens, Lollards and Protestants in the Diocese of York, 15089-1558 (London, 1959), pp. 126-31.

Thereafter: Dickens, Lollards and Protestants, p. 14.
Edited edition with no identifiable author The Crowland Chronicle Continuations, 1459-1486, ed. N. Pronay and J. Cox (London, 1986)

The Crowland Chronicle Continuations, 1459-1486, ed. N. Pronay and J. Cox (London, 1986), pp. 109-99.

Thereafter: Crowland Chronicle, p. 108.
Book chapter Pelling, M. ‘Appearance and Reality: Barber Surgeons, the Body and Disease’, in A.L. Beier and Roger Finlay (eds.), London 1500–1700: The Making of the Metropolis (London, 1986), pp. 82-112

M. Pelling, ‘Appearance and Reality: Barber Surgeons, the Body and Disease’, in A.L. Beier and R. Finlay (eds.), London 1500–1700: The Making of the Metropolis (London, 1986), pp. 84-6.

Thereafter: Pelling, ‘Appearance and Reality’, p. 110.
Journal article Donahue, C., Jr, ‘The Canon Law on the Formation of Marriage and Social Practice in the Later Middle Ages’, Journal of Family History, 8/2 (1983), pp. 144–58

C. Donahue, Jr, ‘The Canon Law on the Formation of Marriage and Social Practice in the Later Middle Ages’, Journal of Family History, 8/2 (1983), p. 145.

Thereafter: Donahue, ‘Canon Law’, pp. 150-1.

 

Multiple page references: use minimum repetition for numbers except in the teens: e.g. pp. 1-8, 8-15, 13-15, 44-8, 100-8, 113-15, 122-3, 123-39, 232-345.

Give the complete page-range for an article or chapter only in the bibliography, not in the footnotes.

See the detailed sections below for many variations on these basic types. These will not cover every possible variant you will need, especially for older works. In these cases, there are no right or wrong forms, and you will not be penalized for slight variants: the key principle is to use patterns that are reasonably consistent with this guide.

Detailed Citation Guide

Author Name(s) Book Title Edition Multi-Volume Work Place/Date of Publication
Stubbs, W, The Constitutional History of England in its Origin and Development, 5th edn (3 vols, Oxford, 1891)

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes
Book with one author Dickens, A. G., Lollards and Protestants in the Diocese of York, 1509-1558 (London, 1959)

A. G. Dickens, Lollards and Protestants in the Diocese of York, 1509-1558 (London, 1959), pp. 126-31.

Thereafter: Dickens, Lollards and Protestants, p. 14.
Book with two authors Prevenier, W. and Blockmans, W., The Burgundian Netherlands (Cambridge, 1986)

W. Prevenier and W. Blockmans, The Burgundian Netherlands (Cambridge, 1986), pp. 203-4.

Thereafter: Prevenier and Blockmans, Burgundian Netherlands, p. 133.
Multi-volume book
Book in subsequent edition		 Stubbs, W., Constitutional History of England in its Origin and Development, 6th edn (3 vols, Oxford, 1903)

W. Stubbs, Constitutional History of England in its Origin and Development, 6th edn (3 vols, Oxford, 1903), ii, pp. 15-18.

Thereafter: Stubbs, Constitutional History, ii, pp. 15-18
Book with an additional editor Pollock, F. and Maitland, F. W., The History of English Law before the time of Edward I, 2nd edn, ed. S. F. C. Milsom (2 vols, Cambridge, 1968)

F. Pollock and F. W. Maitland, The History of English Law before the time of Edward I, 2nd edn, ed. S. F. C. Milsom (2 vols, Cambridge, 1968), i, pp. xxxix-xl.

Thereafter: Pollock and Maitland, History of English Law, i, pp. 316-18.

Reprinted book

Only use if pagination has changed or if there is new material (e.g. an editor's introduction, etc.)

 Warren, W. L., King John (London, 1961; repr. Harmondsworth, 1966)

W. L. Warren, King John (London, 1961; repr. Harmondsworth, 1966), pp. 120-2.

Thereafter: Warren, King John, p. 130.

Print book consulted electronically

For guidance on how to cite electronic Legal Deposit eBooks which lack pagination, please see https://libguides.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/eld-explained/citing.

 Ames, Glenn J., Renascent Empire? The House of Braganza and the Quest for Stability in Portuguese Monsoon Asia, ca. 1640-1683 (Amsterdam, 2000), OAPEN Library (19 Sept. 2016)

Glenn J. Ames, Renascent Empire? The House of Braganza and the Quest for Stability in Portuguese Monsoon Asia, ca. 1640-1683 (Amsterdam, 2000), p. 150.

Thereafter: Ames, Renascent Empire?, p. 56.

 

Author of Chapter Book Chapter Author/Editor of Book Book Title Place/Date of Publication
Ramsay, G. D. 'The Foreign Policy of Elizabeth I', in C. A. Haigh (ed), The Reign of Elizabeth I (London and Basingstoke, 1984)

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes
Chapter in a book Pelling, M., ‘Appearance and Reality: Barber Surgeons, the Body and Disease’, in A. L. Beier and Roger Finlay (eds), London 1500–1700: The Making of the Metropolis (London, 1986), pp. 82-112

M. Pelling, ‘Appearance and Reality: Barber Surgeons, the Body and Disease’, in A. L. Beier and R. Finlay (eds), London 1500–1700: The Making of the Metropolis (London, 1986), pp. 84-6.

Thereafter: Pelling, ‘Appearance and Reality’, p. 110.
Chapter consulted electronically Cross, C., ‘The English Universities, 1553-58’, in E. Duffy and D. Loades (eds), The Church of Mary Tudor (Aldershot, 2006), pp. 57-76, ebrary (19 Oct. 2015)

C. Cross, ‘The English Universities, 1553-58’, in E. Duffy and D. Loades (eds), The Church of Mary Tudor (Aldershot, 2006), p. 58.

Thereafter: Cross, ‘English Universities’, pp. 60-2.
Chapter in a reference work Edel, A., ‘Happiness and Pleasure’, in Dictionary of the History of Ideas (New York, 1973), ii, pp. 375-87

A. Edel, ‘Happiness and Pleasure’, in Dictionary of the History of Ideas (New York, 1973), ii, p. 379.

Thereafter: Edel, ‘Happiness and Pleasure’, pp. 375-6
Chapter in a reference work consulted electronically Cairns, John W., ‘Knight, Joseph (b. c.1753)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford, May 2009), http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/93749 (26 Sept. 2016)

John W. Cairns, ‘Knight, Joseph (b. c.1753)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford, May 2009), http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/93749 (26 Sept. 2016).

Thereafter: Cairns, ‘Joseph Knight’.

 

Author Name(s) Article Title Journal Title Volume, Issue, Year, Page Nos.
Frank, M. and Reinisch, J., 'Refugees and the Nation-State in Europe, 1919-59', Journal of Contemporary History 49/3 (2014), pp. 477-90

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes
Journal article

Boyce, R. W. D., ‘Imperial Dreams and National Realities: Britain, Canada and the Struggle for a Pacific Telegraph Cable, 1879-1902’, English Historical Review, 115/460 (2000), pp. 39-70

Note: abbreviate to EHR if you have defined EHR as English Historical Review in your list of abbreviations

R. W. D. Boyce, ‘Imperial Dreams and National Realities: Britain, Canada and the Struggle for a Pacific Telegraph Cable, 1879-1902’, English Historical Review, 115/460 (2000), pp. 52-3.

Thereafter: Boyce, ‘Imperial Dreams’, p. 69.

Note: EHR numbers all its individual issues sequentially rather than by year.
Journal article only exists electronically Chatterjee, I., ‘Monastic “Governmentality”: Revisiting “Community” and “Communalism” in South Asia’, History Compass, 13/10 (2015), pp. 497–511, doi: 10.1111/hic3.12265

I. Chatterjee, ‘Monastic “Governmentality”: Revisiting “Community” and “Communalism” in South Asia’, History Compass, 13/10 (2015), [doi: 10.1111/hic3.12265], pp. 498-9.

Thereafter: Chatterjee, ‘Monastic Governmentality’, p. 500.

Note: In publications without a bibliography, such as journal articles, you should also insert the doi.

Pre-print/early view journal article

Note: there may be a significant period before the final version is published.

Bunkle, P., ‘The 1944 Education Act and Second Wave Feminism’, in Women’s History Review (published online 7 March 2016), doi: 10.1080/09612025.2015.1132877

Note: the pagination may be absent from the early-view version or change in the final printed version.

P. Bunkle, ‘The 1944 Education Act and Second Wave Feminism’, in Women’s History Review (published online 7 March 2016), [doi: 10.1080/09612025.2015.1132877], pp. 3-17.

Thereafter: Bunkle, ‘1944 Education Act’, p. 11.

Note: In publications without a bibliography, such as journal articles, you should also insert the doi.

 

Author Name(s) Article Title Journal Title Volume, Issue, Year, Page Nos.
Frank, M. and Reinisch, J., 'Refugees and the Nation-State in Europe, 1919-59', Journal of Contemporary History 49/3 (2014), pp. 477-90

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes
Journal article

Boyce, R. W. D., ‘Imperial Dreams and National Realities: Britain, Canada and the Struggle for a Pacific Telegraph Cable, 1879-1902’, English Historical Review, 115/460 (2000), pp. 39-70

Note: abbreviate to EHR if you have defined EHR as English Historical Review in your list of abbreviations

R. W. D. Boyce, ‘Imperial Dreams and National Realities: Britain, Canada and the Struggle for a Pacific Telegraph Cable, 1879-1902’, English Historical Review, 115/460 (2000), pp. 52-3.

Thereafter: Boyce, ‘Imperial Dreams’, p. 69.

Note: EHR numbers all its individual issues sequentially rather than by year.
Journal article only exists electronically Chatterjee, I., ‘Monastic “Governmentality”: Revisiting “Community” and “Communalism” in South Asia’, History Compass, 13/10 (2015), pp. 497–511, doi: 10.1111/hic3.12265

I. Chatterjee, ‘Monastic “Governmentality”: Revisiting “Community” and “Communalism” in South Asia’, History Compass, 13/10 (2015), [doi: 10.1111/hic3.12265], pp. 498-9.

Thereafter: Chatterjee, ‘Monastic Governmentality’, p. 500.

Note: In publications without a bibliography, such as journal articles, you should also insert the doi.

Pre-print/early view journal article

Note: there may be a significant period before the final version is published.

Bunkle, P., ‘The 1944 Education Act and Second Wave Feminism’, in Women’s History Review (published online 7 March 2016), doi: 10.1080/09612025.2015.1132877

Note: the pagination may be absent from the early-view version or change in the final printed version.

P. Bunkle, ‘The 1944 Education Act and Second Wave Feminism’, in Women’s History Review (published online 7 March 2016), [doi: 10.1080/09612025.2015.1132877], pp. 3-17.

Thereafter: Bunkle, ‘1944 Education Act’, p. 11.

Note: In publications without a bibliography, such as journal articles, you should also insert the doi.

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Book with author and editor/ translator

Commynes, Philippe de, Memoirs, ed. and tr. M. C. E. Jones (Harmondsworth, 1972)

Philippe de Commynes, Memoirs, ed. and tr. M. C. E. Jones (Harmondsworth, 1972), pp. 80-9.

Thereafter: Commynes, Memoirs, p. 71.

Books with no identifiable author

The Crowland Chronicle Continuations, 1459-1486, ed. N. Pronay and J. Cox (London, 1986)

The Crowland Chronicle Continuations, 1459-1486, ed. N. Pronay and J. Cox (London, 1986), pp. 109-99.

Thereafter: Crowland Chronicle, p. 108.

Editions of texts and sources that are part of a series

The Plumpton Letters and Papers, ed. J. Kirby, Camden Soc., 5th series, 8 (London, 1996)

The Plumpton Letters and Papers, ed. J. Kirby, Camden Soc., 5th series, 8 (London, 1996), nos. 3, 13.

Thereafter: Plumpton Letters, no. 4.

Translations

Secret History of the Mongols, trans. N. Dorjgotov and Z. Erendo, ed. D. Tumurtogoo (Ulaanbaatar, 2006)

Secret History of the Mongols, trans. N. Dorjgotov and Z. Erendo, ed. D. Tumurtogoo (Ulaanbaatar, 2006), pp. 145-50.

Thereafter: Secret History, p. 153.

Book with an organisation, company or government author

London Anti-Slavery Society, Punishments inflicted under the Apprenticeship System (London, 1838)

London Anti-Slavery Society, Punishments inflicted under the Apprenticeship System (London, 1838), p. 15.

Thereafter: London Anti-Slavery Society, Punishments, p. 12.
Facsimile of book Two East Anglian Picture Books: a Facsimile of the Helmingham Herbal and Bestiary and Bodleian MS. Ashmole 1504, ed. N. Barker (London, 1988)

Two East Anglian Picture Books: a Facsimile of the Helmingham Herbal and Bestiary and Bodleian MS. Ashmole 1504, ed. N. Barker (London, 1988), plate 66.

Thereafter: East Anglian Picture Books, pl. 33.
Incunabula (Book printed before 1500)

Albertus Magnus, De animalibus, ed. Fernandus Cordubensis (Rome: Simon Nicolai Chardella, de Lucca, 1478)

Note: For incunabula, the name of the printer is also included.

Note: for Latin titles, initial-capitals are not used.

Albertus Magnus, De animalibus, ed. Fernandus Cordubensis (Rome: Simon Nicolai Chardella, de Lucca, 1478), xix.

Thereafter: Albertus Magnus, De animalibus, xi.
Early printed book (printed after 1500) Ley, C., The Nobleman, Gentleman, Land Steward, and Surveyor’s Compleat Guide: in which is fully described every particular Circumstance relative to the proper Management of Estates…(London, 1787)

C. Ley, The Nobleman, Gentleman, Land Steward, and Surveyor’s Compleat Guide (London, 1787), pp. 55-6.

Thereafter: Ley, Nobleman, p. 40.
Early printed book consulted electronically Martyn, W., Youths Instruction (London, 1612), Early English Books Online (16 Oct. 2015)

W. Martyn, Youths Instruction (London, 1612), pp. 5-6.

Thereafter: Martyn, Youths Instruction, p. 8.

Modern source consulted electronically

For guidance how to cite electronic Legal Deposit eBooks which lack pagination, please see https://ox.libguides.com/eld-explained/citing.

 Warren, W. L., King John (London, 1961; repr. Harmondsworth, 1966)

W. L. Warren, King John (London, 1961; repr. Harmondsworth, 1966), pp. 120-2.

Thereafter: Warren, King John, p. 130.

Print book consulted electronically

For guidance on how to cite electronic Legal Deposit eBooks which lack pagination, please see https://libguides.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/eld-explained/citing.

 Wätjen, H., Das Holländische Kolonialreich in Brasilien: ein Kapital aus der Kolonialgeschichte des 17. Jahrhunderts (Haag, 1921), http://archive.org/details/dashollndischek00wtgoog, (16 Oct. 2015)

H. Wätjen, Das Holländische Kolonialreich in Brasilien: ein Kapital aus der Kolonialgeschichte des 17. Jahrhunderts (Haag, 1921), p. 31.

Thereafter: Wätjen, Holländische Kolonialreich, p. 50

 

 

Location Archive/Library Collection Name/Class Enumeration: Folio, etc. Description of Work
London, British Library, MS Arundel 66 fos. 3r-32v: John Killingworth, Astronomical Tables

 

Citing Manuscripts

Citations of manuscript or typescript sources, including records, diaries, personal papers, etc., should be made by means of the call numbers of the appropriate library or repository. These will take many different forms and only a limited number of examples are represented below.

If the nature of the materials is obvious from the text, this is all that is necessary. However, it is often helpful, and sometimes necessary to avoid confusion, to add brief descriptions to give the reader some indication of the nature of the sources referred to.

Tip: In your list of abbreviations, you can define a library or repository’s abbreviated name. E.g. British Library = BL, Wiltshire Record Office = WRO

 
Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Manuscript

Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Rawlinson, C 674

Oxford, Bodleian MS Rawlinson, C 674, fos. 17v-18r.

Thereafter: MS Rawl. C 674, fo. 6v.

The National Archives (TNA)

[formerly known as Public Record Office (PRO)]

London, TNA, SP 16/173, fo. 50: ‘Account of wants of cordage presently to be provided for all his Majesty's Navy’, 16 Sept. 1630

‘Account of wants of cordage presently to be provided for all his Majesty's Navy’, 16 Sept. 1630, TNA, SP 16/173, fo. 50.

Thereafter: TNA, SP 16/173, fo. 50.

Salisbury, Wiltshire Record Office, D1/39/1/26: Bishop of Salisbury, Instance Act Book, 1596–8

[Bishop of Salisbury, Instance Act Book, 1596–8], Wiltshire Record Office, D1/39/1/26, fo. 227.

Thereafter: WRO, D1/39/1/26, fo. 227.

Note: if you cite a repository frequently, you will normally include it in your list of abbreviations.

German state archive

Berlin, Landesarchiv Berlin (LAB) A Pr. Br. 030-02-05 (Kriminalpolizeileitstelle Berlin Personenkarten ‘Allgemein’), Nr. 195

Landesarchiv Berlin (LAB) A Pr. Br. 030-02-05 (Kriminalpolizeileitstelle Berlin Personenkarten ‘Allgemein’), Nr. 195.

Thereafter: LAB A Pr. Br. 030-02-05, Nr. 855.

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

British Parliamentary papers

Parliamentary Papers (1878), xii.1 (333), Report from the Select Committee on East India (Public Works)

Parliamentary Papers (1878), xii (333), Report from the Select Committee on East India (Public Works), p. x.

Thereafter: Parl Pap. (1878), xii, pp. 344-6.

Note: Use Parl Pap. if thus listed in a list of abbreviations. Else, use Parliamentary Papers.

British Parliamentary papers (Command papers)

Parliamentary Papers (1986/87), Cm 145, The Law Commission (Law Com. No. 162). Landlord and Tenant: Reform of the Law

Parliamentary Papers (1986/87), Cm 145, The Law Commission (Law Com. No. 162). Landlord and Tenant: Reform of the Law, p. 5.

Thereafter: Parl. Pap. (1986/87), Cm 145, pp9-10.

British Parliament: Hansard (Official Report of Parliamentary Debates) pre-1909 citations

[Hansard], Parliamentary Debates, First Series (1803-4), ii, cols. 933-4 (3 July 1804, British Museum)

[Hansard], Parliamentary Debates, 1st ser., ii, cols. 933-4 (3 July 1804, British Museum).

Thereafter: Parl. Debs., 1st ser., ii, col. 934.

Note: Use Parl. Debs. if thus listed in a list of abbreviations. Else, use Parliamentary Debates.

United States. Congress. Senate

US Congress. Senate. Committee on Foreign Relations. What is Wrong with our Foreign Policy. Hearing. 86th Congress, 1st session, 15 April 1959

US Congress. Senate. Committee on Foreign Relations. What is Wrong with our Foreign Policy. Hearing. 86th Cong., 1st sess., 15 April 1959.

Thereafter: US Cong., Sen., What is Wrong.

Germany. Auswärtiges Amt

Akten zur Deutschen Auswärtigen Politik, Serie D: 1937-1945 (13 vols., Baden-Baden, 1950-70)

Akten zur Deutschen Auswärtigen Politik, Serie D: 1937-1945 (Baden-Baden, 1950), i, no. 19, pp. 25-32.

Thereafter: ADAP, Ser. D, x, no. 303, p. 353.

Note: use ADAP if thus listed in a list of abbreviations. Else, use Akten zur Deutschen Auswärtigen Politik.

France. Assemblée Nationale

Journal Officiel de la République Francaise, Débats parlementaires, Assemblée Nationale

Journal Officiel de la République Francaise, Débats parlementaires Assemblée National, 5 May 1992, p. 840.

Thereafter: JO, Débats, p. 841.

Note: Use JO if thus listed in a list of abbreviations.

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Printed newspaper article

‘County Bench - July 19th’, The Surrey Comet (26 July 1856), p. 18 col b

‘County Bench - July 19th’, The Surrey Comet (26 July 1856), p. 18 col b.

Thereafter: ‘County Bench - July 19th’.

Newspaper article consulted electronically

‘Heath's U S Visit “Worth Gold”’, The Times [London], no. 57574 (31 May 1969), p. 4 col a, Times Digital Archive (25 Aug. 2016)

‘Heath's US Visit “Worth Gold”’, The Times [London], no. 57574 (31 May 1969), p. 4 col a.

Thereafter: ‘Heath's US Visit “Worth Gold”’.

 

Column Citation

Column citation by letter (e.g. p. 2 col. d for the fourth column) may be desirable in some cases, such as broadsheet newspapers.

 

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Old Testament

The English Standard Version Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments with Apocrypha (Oxford, 2009)

Gen. 15:24.

Tip: use abbreviations as suggested in the New Oxford Style Manual (s.a.)

Ancient author

Herodotus, The Histories, tr. R. Waterfield (Oxford, 1998)

Herodotus, The Histories, tr. R. Waterfield (Oxford, 1998), 5.62-78.

Thereafter: Herodotus, Histories, 2.122.

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Microfilm

Proceedings of the Milwaukee Common Council, Vol. 15 (1872-1873), microfilm

Proceedings of the Milwaukee Common Council, vol. 15, (1872-1873), microfilm, reel 15, 24 June 1872.

Microfiche

Barruel, A., Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire du jacobinisme (Hambourg, 1798-9), microfiche 2/128, The French Revolution Research Collection (Oxford, 1989-1993)

A. Barruel, Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire du jacobinisme (Hambourg, 1798-9), microfiche 2/128, T.1, p. 80, The French Revolution Research Collection (Oxford, 1989-1993), p. 79.

Thereafter: Barruel, Mémoires, pp. 120-2.

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Image not provided in the text

Courbet, Gustave, The Banks of a Stream, 1873, oil on canvas, 60 x 73 cm (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford)

 

Gustave Courbet, The Banks of a Stream, 1873, oil on canvas, 60 x 73 cm (Ashmolean Museum, Oxford).

Thereafter: Courbet, Banks of a Stream.

Image provided in the text

[provide this in your list of illustrations]

[cited as fig.]

Image in online resource

Blackboard used by Albert Einstein, Oxford, 16 May 1931, Museum of the History of Science, Oxford, http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/blackboard/einstein-l.htm, (28 Sept. 2008)

Blackboard used by Albert Einstein, Oxford, 16 May 1931, Museum of the History of Science, Oxford http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/blackboard/einstein-l.htm (28 Sept. 2008).

Film on DVD

A Hard Day's Night, dir. Richard Lester (Film, 1964, DVD, 2000)

A Hard Day's Night, dir. Richard Lester (Film, 1964, DVD, 2000), 15:10.

Thereafter: Hard Day’s Night, 40:30-45:59.

Online film

Britain at Bay, dir. Harry Watt (Film, 1940), http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1315472/ (25 August 2016)

Britain at Bay, dir. Harry Watt (Film, 1940), 1:10, http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1315472/ (25 August 2016).

Thereafter: Britain at Bay, 2:04.

Television

Our Mutual Friend, dir. Julian Farino (TV series, 1998), Episode 1

Our Mutual Friend, dir. Julian Farino (TV series, 1998), Episode 1, 21:24-24:21.

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Interview

Interview with Isabel Holowaty, conducted by Benjamin Thompson, Bodleian Library, 29 Sept. 2016

Interview with Isabel Holowaty, conducted by Benjamin Thompson, Bodleian Library, 29 Sept. 2016[, p.3 if transcribed]; in the author’s possession/see Appendix.

Interview (transcript published online)

McEwen, S. ‘Tan Twan Eng Interview: “I have No Alternative but to Write in English”’, The Spectator (20 May 2013), https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/tan-twan-eng-interview-i-have-no-alternative-but-to-write-in-english/ (22 Nov. 2022)

S. McEwen, ‘Tan Twan Eng Interview: “I have No Alternative but to Write in English”’, The Spectator (20 May 2013), https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/tan-twan-eng-interview-i-have-no-alternative-but-to-write-in-english/ (22 Nov. 2022).

Type of Material Example of Referencing in the Bibliography Example of Referencing in the Footnotes

Website

‘Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address’ http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/vc2.6p1.jpg (29 July 2014)

‘Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address’ http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/vc2.6p1.jpg (29 July 2014).

BBC news report (no named author)

BBC News, ‘War on Iraq begins’ (20 March 2003), http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2866109.stm (14 Sept. 2016)

BBC News, ‘War on Iraq begins’ (20 March 2003), http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2866109.stm (14 Sept. 2016).

Thereafter: “War on Iraq begins’.

Blog

Kidd, Thomas, 'Martin Luther King and the History of Religious Extremism', The Anxious Bench blog (24 May 2016), http://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2016/05/martin-luther-king-and-the-history-of-religious-extremism/ (14 Sept. 2016)

Thomas Kidd, 'Martin Luther King and the History of Religious Extremism', The Anxious Bench blog (24 May 2016), http://www.patheos.com/blogs/anxiousbench/2016/05/martin-luther-king-and-the-history-of-religious-extremism/ (14 Sept. 2016).

Thereafter: Kidd, ‘Martin Luther King’.

YouTube

Malcolm X interviewed by Dr Kenneth Clarke, YouTube (recorded 1963, uploaded 8 July 2014)  https://youtu.be/2Y3HWe50ac8  (22 Nov 2016)

Same.

Podcast

The Profits of Slavery, podcast, History Today (Aug 2015). https://shows.acast.com/historytoday/episodes/5e1f02239a47b5450663b631 (22 Nov. 2016)

Same.

 

See pp. 372 in New Oxford Style Manual (3rd edn, Oxford, 2016) for further examples.

Further Reading

  • New Hart's Rules: the Handbook of Style for Writers and Editors (Oxford, 2005)
  • New Oxford Dictionary for Writers and Editors: the Essential A-Z Guide to the Written Word (Oxford, 2005)
  • New Oxford Style Manual, 3rd edn (Oxford, 2016) on which this guidance is based, although with some variation.