On this page
- Chicago style edition and punctuation
- Act of Parliament
- Conference and symposium proceedings
- Encyclopedia or dictionary entry
- Interviews and personal communications
- Lecture notes, study guide or book of readings
- News or magazine article
- Reports
- Thesis or dissertation
- Referencing disclaimer
- Related content
Chicago style edition and punctuation
The examples on this page use the recently released Chicago Manual of Style 18th edition.
Punctuation is important. Use the same punctuation and formatting as the order instructions and examples. Use 1 space after any punctuation mark.
The Chicago Manual of Style sets out 2 referencing systems: footnotes and a bibliography or an author-date system. This page outlines both methods for referencing sources in Chicago style.
Act of Parliament
Usually, you will refer to Acts or Bills before Parliament in text or in a note only, even for the author-date system. Write out locations, for example, Section, Part or Clause, in full in-text and use abbreviations, such as s, pt and cl, in footnotes.
Order: Title year enacted, no., sections cited, URL.
Include the Act or Bill number if there is one.
Example footnote
1Crimes Act 1961, No. 43, s7A(1)(b), http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1961/0043/137.0/whole.html#DLM328025.
Conference and symposium proceedings
Cite unpublished papers or posters presented at a conference, symposium or meeting as a footnote, even when using the author-date system.
Example footnotes
1Mike Katz, “The Meaning of Mast Cells,” PowerPoint presentation, Meeting of the Jones Memorial Research Foundation, Wellington, March 31, 2012.
2Wu, Ting, “Recording Baby Laughter,” paper presented at the annual Society for Neonatal Research conference (virtual), July 04, 2012.
Reference formally published conference papers like a chapter in an edited book. If they're published in a journal, reference them like a journal article. Conference papers retrieved online should end with a URL or DOI.
Encyclopedia or dictionary entry
Author-date system
In-text citations
Be cautious when citing encyclopedias or dictionaries as they are generally not considered to be sufficiently academic to be a credible and robust source.
Give the author and year as with any other source.
If the author is unknown, use the title of the source. If the reference is alphabetically arranged, such as in a dictionary or encyclopedia, cite the entry in the dictionary instead of the page number. If the reference is not alphabetically arranged, give the page number as you would in a book citation.
Example in-text citation
(Encyclopaedia Britannica 1980, "salvation")
Reference list
Order: Encyclopaedia/Dictionary Title. Year. Edition. "Title of entry," Publisher or URL.
When there is no publication, revision or last modified date, give an access date.
Example reference list
Encyclopedia Britannica. 1980. 15th ed. "Salvation." William Benton.
Merriam-Webster. 2019. "Sauce." Accessed October 21, 2019. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sauce.
Footnote and bibliography system
Footnotes and endnotes
Well-known and reliable reference works are usually cited only in the notes, not the bibliography. Treat encyclopedia or dictionary entries like a page number. You can use 'under' for clarity. Give an access date if there is no date of publication, revision or modification. Time stamps can be included for frequently updated sources.
Order: Encyclopedia/Dictionary Title, edition. (Date), under "title of entry," last updated or access date, URL.
If there is no date, include the last updated or access date.
Example footnote
1Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. (1989), under "neuroscience."
2Dictionary of American Biography, (1937), “Wadsworth, Jeremiah.”
3Wikipedia, “Stevie Nicks,” last modified September 9, 2022, 23:42, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Nicks.
Interviews and personal communications
Reference published interviews according to how they are published. For example, books, journal articles or webpages.
If you are citing something communicated to you in person, use the full name of the person being cited followed by the terms 'personal communication' 'pers. comm.', 'unpublished data' or a more specific description, such as 'Facebook direct message to author'. Give the date after the description of the communication. Reference list entries are not required for personal communications as they are a source that cannot be located by the reader.
Example in-text citations
(Julia Smith, pers. comm., 2019)
(Jonathan Lee, Facebook direct message to author, May 5, 2018).
(Sarah Jones, text message to author, April 10, 2016).
(Henri White, unpublished data, 2016).
Example footnotes
1(Henri White, unpublished data, 2016).
2Jonathan Lee, email message to author, May 2, 2023.
Lecture notes, study guide or book of readings
Note that many lecturers prefer you to go outside academic sources rather than relying only on their wording and ideas.
Doing research demonstrates that you can explore the topic outside the boundaries of the course materials.
Chicago Style does not prescribe a specific format for study guides, so they should be treated like books, online books or chapters in an edited book. Check with your lecturer to learn how they would like you to reference course material.
If a single author is listed, use their name. If a study guide is written by many authors, with editors, treat it like a chapter in an edited book.
Referencing books in Chicago style
Many courses at Massey University use a book of readings, which is a collection of photocopied journal articles, book chapters and other relevant material. Because the sections are direct photocopies, reference the original source rather than the book of readings.
In the reference list, format the entries according to their original type. For example, books, journals or webpages.
News or magazine article
Author-date system
In-text citations
For an in-text news or magazine citation, give the author and date, followed by a comma and the page reference if needed. This format applies to all magazine or news articles, print and online.
If no author is given, use the title of the newspaper or magazine in author.
Example in-text citation
(The Post 2007)
Reference list
Often with news stories and magazine articles, you do not need to include the article page range in the reference list, as the article may be interrupted by other material such as advertising or other articles. Repeat the year of publication with the month and date.
Order: Authors. Year. "Article Title." Title of Newspaper/Magazine. Detailed date of publication, page range.
Example reference list
Wallace, Neil. 2010. "MAF Director-General Plans to Be Visible." Otago Daily Times, November 29.
Gibbs, Nancy. 2018. "Free Speech, Forced Speech and the Right to Silence." Time, March 1.
The Post. 2007. “Beehive updating job wins award.” October 29.
Footnote and bibliography system
Footnotes and endnotes
Order: Authors, "Article Title," Title of Newspaper/Magazine, month, date, page.
Example footnote
1Graham Adams, "The Madness of the Auckland Housing Market; How Crazy Is This?" North and South, April 15, 2015, 38.
2Adams, "The Madness."
Bibliography
Order: Authors. "Article Title." Title of Newspaper/Magazine, Month, date, page.
Example bibliography
Graham Adams. "The Madness of the Auckland Housing Market; How Crazy Is This?" North and South, April 15, 2015, 38.
Online news or magazine article
Online news or magazine article
Order: Authors. Year. "Article Title." Title of Newspaper/Magazine. Publication date details. URL or database name.
If no author is given, list the article title first in the footnote, but use the title of the newspaper or magazine in the author position in the bibliography.
Example footnotes
1Wallace, Neil, "MAF Director-General Plans to Be Visible," Otago Daily Times, November 29, 2010. https://www.odt.co.nz/business/farming/maf-director-general-plans-be-visible.
2"In Capital, Tensions Rise," Wellington Times, August 30, 2012, https://www.wt.co.nz/politics/capital/tensions-rise.
Example reference list
Wallace, Neil. "MAF Director-General Plans to Be Visible." Otago Daily Times, November 29, 2010. https://www.odt.co.nz/business/farming/maf-director-general-plans-be-visible.
Wellington Times. “In Capital, Tensions Rise.” August 30, 2012. https://www.wt.co.nz/politics/capital/tensions-rise.
Reports
Author-date system
Reference list
Order: Authors. Year. Title of Document. Source type identifier. Place of publication, publication date details. Publisher's name.
The publication date details are optional.
If necessary, include the source type identifier.
Example reference list
New Zealand Police. 2017. The Safest Country: Policing 2021. New Zealand Police Four Year Plan 2017/2018-2020/2021, May. Acme Press.
If accessed online, omit the publisher's name and include the URL.
Example reference list
New Zealand Police. 2017. The Safest Country: Policing 2021. New Zealand Police Four Year Plan 2017/2018-2020/2021, May. http://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/publications/2017-21-police-four-year-plan.pdf.
United Nations General Assembly. 2016. Report on Best Practices and Lessons Learned on How Protecting and Promoting Human Rights Contribute to Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism. Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, July 21. https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G16/162/55/pdf/G1616255.pdf?OpenElement.
Footnote and bibliography system
Footnotes and endnotes
Order: Authors, Title (Publisher name, year), URL.
Include the URL if accessed online.
Example footnote
1Department of Corrections, Managing Offender Health, (Department of Corrections, 2014), https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/newsletters_and_brochures/managing_offender_health_brochure.html.
2Education Review Office, Evaluation at a Glance: A Decade of Assessment in New Zealand Primary Schools – Practice and Trends (Education Review Office, 2018). https://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Evaluation-at-a-glance-assessment-practice-and-trends-2020.pdf.
3Ian Wallis, Carolyn O'Fallon and Don Wignall, Regional Transport Targets for Sustainable Transportation in New Zealand, NZ Transport Agency Research Report: 385 (New Zealand Transport Agency, 2009), 67.
4The Warehouse Group, 2018 Annual Report, https://www.thewarehousegroup.co.nz/investor-centre/2018-annual-report.
Bibliography
Order: Authors. Title. Publisher name, year. URL if accessed online.
Example bibliography
Department of Corrections. Managing Offender Health, 2014. https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/newsletters_and_brochures/managing_offender_health_brochure.html">https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/newsletters_and_brochures/managing_offender_health_brochure.html.
Wallis, Ian, Carolyn O'Fallon and Don Wignall. Regional Transport Targets for Sustainable Transportation in New Zealand. NZ Transport Agency Research Report: 385. New Zealand Transport Agency, 2009.
Thesis or dissertation
A thesis is treated as not published or informally published, so it appears in quotation marks, not italics.
Author-date system
Reference list
Order: Authors. (Date). "Title of thesis." Kind of thesis, University. Database. URL.
Example reference list
Louise Virginia Humpage. (2002). "Closing the Gaps? The Politics of Māori Affairs Policy" PhD diss., Massey University. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/2155.
Footnote and bibliography system
Footnotes and endnotes
Order: Authors, "Title of thesis" (kind of thesis, academic institution, year), specific page, URL or database.
Example footnote
1Louise Virginia Humpage, "Closing the Gaps? The Politics of Māori Affairs Policy" (PhD diss., Massey University, 2002), 98, http://hdl.handle.net/10179/2155.
2Humpage, "Closing the Gaps," 77.
Bibliography
Order: Authors. "Title of thesis." Kind of thesis, academic institution, year. URL or database.
Example bibliography
Humpage, Louise Virginia. "Closing the Gaps? The Politics of Māori Affairs Policy." PhD diss., Massey University, 2002. http://hdl.handle.net/10179/2155.
Referencing disclaimer
This page is a guide to proper referencing. Your course, department, school or institute may prescribe specific conventions. Their recommendations supersede these instructions. If your questions are not covered here, ask your course coordinator or ask on our Academic Q&A forum.
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