MLA Style is commonly used to cite sources in the arts and humanities. For complete current guidelines, consult MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (8th edition).
MLA citations can be constructed according to the formula below, which has the same structure for each format.
Citation Formula:
Author.
Title of source.
Title of container,
Other contributors,
Version,
Number,
Publishers,
Publication date,
Location.
Container
Examples of containers include the title of an edited volume, a journal, or a database.
Location
Location can mean pages, in a print resource, or a URL or DOI (Digital Object Identifier) in an electronic resource.
In-text citation
Example: (Grafton 34-8)
Example of a book citation
Author. Grafton, Anthony.
Title of source. Athenae Batavae: the research imperative at Leiden, 1575-1650.
Title of container,
Other contributors,
Version,
Number,
Publishers, Primavera,
Publication date, 2003.
Location.
Final citation: . Grafton, Anthony. Athenae Batavae: the research imperative at Leiden, 1575-1650. Primavera, 2003.
Edited and translated book: Bruno, Giordano. The Cabala of Pegasus. Translated and annotated by Sidney L. Sondergard and Madison U. Sowell. Yale University Press, 2002.
Article in a book: De la Mare, Albinia Catherine. "The Florentine Scribes of Cardinal Giovanni of Aragon." Il libro e il testo edited by Cesare Questa and Renato Raffaelli, Università degli Studi di Urbino, 1984, pp. 245-46.
Example of a print journal article
Author. Chambers, David Sanderson.Title of source. "The Housing Problems of Cardinal Francesco Gonzaga."
Title of container, Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institutes,
Other contributors,
Version,
Number, Vol. 39,
Publishers,
Publication date, 1976
Location. pp. 21-58.
Final citation:
Chambers, David Sanderson. "The Housing Problems of Cardinal Francesco Gonzaga." Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institutes. Vol. 39. 1976, pp. 21-58.
Article in a book: De la Mare, Albinia Catherine. "The Florentine Scribes of Cardinal Giovanni of Aragon." Il libro e il testo, edited by Cesare Questa and Renato Raffaelli, Università degli Studi di Urbino, 1984, pp. 245-46.
Article from a database: Kraye, Jill. “Renaissance Quarterly.” Renaissance Quarterly, vol. 45, no. 4, 1992, pp. 846–848, www.jstor.org/stable/2862647.
Example of an article from a database:
Author. Kraye, Jill.
Title of source. “Review: Juan Luis Vives and the Emotions. by Carlos G. Noreña.”
Title of container, Renaissance Quarterly,
Other contributors,
Version,
Number, vol. 45, no. 4,
Publishers,
Publication date, 1992,
Location. pp. 846–848, www.jstor.org/stable/2862647.
Full citation: Kraye, Jill. “Review: Juan Luis Vives and the Emotions. by Carlos G. Noreña.” Renaissance Quarterly, vol. 45, no. 4, 1992, pp. 846–848, www.jstor.org/stable/2862647.
Katinis, Teodoro. "De Christiana Religione et Fidei Pietate." Christian-Muslim Relations 1500-1900. Edited by David Thomas et al. Brill Reference Online. 10 Apr. 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2451-9537_cmrii_COM_26606.
How to cite an artwork:
Author. Wtewael, Joachim.
Title of source. Adoration by the Shepherds.
Title of container,
Other contributors,
Version,
Number,
Publishers,
Publication date, 1625,
Medium, oil on panel,
Location. Museo del Prado, Madrid.
Full citation: Wtewael, Joachim. Adoration by the Shepherds. 1625, oil on panel, Museo del Prado, Madrid.
A web image reproduction:
Kölderer, Jörg. Triumphzug. The World of the Habsburgs, 1512-15, www.habsburger.net/en/stories/trumpets-and-drums.