What is Citation and Chicago/Turabian?
This guide is intended to help learn more about citation and how to cite sources in Chicago/Turabian. This guide includes tutorials, online classes, and examples. In this guide you will also learn about plagiarism and how to avoid plagiarism.
Note: The information provided in this guide is intended to be a guideline, not expert advice. If you need additional help with citing sources, speak with your instructor or contact the Student Success Center for additional help.
What is a Citation?
A "citation" is the way you tell your readers that certain material in your work came from another source. It also gives your readers the information necessary to find that source again, including:
- information about the author
- the title of the work
- the name and location of the company that published your copy of the source
- the date your copy was published
- the page numbers of the material you are borrowing.
Why should I cite sources?
Giving credit to the original author by citing sources is the only way to use other people's work without plagiarizing. But there are a number of other reasons to cite sources:
- citations are extremely helpful to anyone who wants to find out more about your ideas and where they came from
- not all sources are good or right -- your own ideas may often be more accurate or interesting than those of your sources. Proper citation will keep you from taking the rap for someone else's bad ideas
- citing sources shows the amount of research you've done
- citing sources strengthens your work by lending outside support to your ideas.
When do I need to cite?
Whenever you borrow words or ideas, you need to acknowledge their source. The following situations almost always require citation:
- whenever you use quotes
- whenever you paraphrase
- whenever you use an idea that someone else has already expressed
- whenever you make specific reference to the work of another
- whenever someone else's work has been critical in developing your own ideas.
(Source: Plagiarism.org website)
