The Elements of a Citation : World Wide Web

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The Elements of a Citation (MLA style)

How does each piece of information help us?

introduction
from a book from a journal / magazine / newspaper from a website from an online journal

putting it all together
more citation tips

Citations from a website:

“How to choose the best multicultural books.” n.d. Scholastic Publications. 30 January 2006. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/instructor/multicultural.htm>. When the author's name is not known, use the title. When the date of posting/ publication is not known, use n.d. (no date).

Kirk, Elizabeth. “Information and its counterfeits: propaganda, misinformation and disinformation.” 2001. The Sheridan Libraries, Johns Hopkins University. 1 January 2004. <http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/counterfeit.html>. Give more information rather than less. Look especially for information which will add to the credibility and authority of your Internet sources, especially the name of the site, or the publisher or organization posting the page or site. Many web sites do not have all the information suggested for the basic citation. Give as much as you can - but remember that citation information is often found on other pages in the site and it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to look for them!

Niman, Michael I. “E-washing history one digital archive at a time.” 19 December 2003. 9 February 2004. <http://mediastudy.com/articles/av12-11-03.html>. The basic pattern for a web site is: Author last, First. "Title of Article." Date posted. Title of site / section of site / publisher. Date you visited the site. <URL>.

“Wind farm.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 18 Dec 2006, 14:09 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 3 January 2007. <http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wind_farm&oldid=95091794>. The date the page was posted is especially important with Wikipedia and, with frequent edits of controversial or newsworthy subjects, the time the page was posted can be important as well.

Element Example How does the element help us?

The author/s Kirk, Elizabeth.
Niman, Michael I. Last name first (of the first-named author).
Listed in alphabetical order, to make it easy to find the name you are looking for.
The author now gets the credit for the words or ideas you have used.
The name of the author may not be shown on the page you use; you might have to find the "title page" or the last page of a series. Make the effort!

The page title. “How to choose...
“Information and its counterfeits:...
“E-washing history...
“Wind farm.” Page titles: the inverted commas show that it is a page title and not the title of a full work. When the author is not known, the page title is used for the alphabetical list of Works Cited. The title used in the title bar at the top of the browser is preferred, but there is no standardization; many page designers fail to use this area - in which case use the article title as given on the page.

Title of work. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Not every site or set of pages has a title, but if there is on, use it.

Date of posting / latest revision. n.d.
2001.
19 December 2003.
18 Dec 2006, 14:09 UTC. The date of posting or latest revision can be very important, and not only to show the currency of your information. If what your reader finds at the URL you give is different to your quotation or paraphrase, it could be because new information has been posted.
In Wikipedia, where pages are frequently edited, sometimes several times a day, the date and the time of posting can be important.
The date of posting may not be shown on the page you use; you might have to find the "title page" or the last page of a series. Make the effort!

Publisher. Scholastic Publications.
The Sheridan Libraries, Johns Hopkins University.

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Not every web page has a publisher. If there is one, and especially if the publisher is well known or will give your quotation or paraphrase extra authority, use it.

Date of access. 30 January 2006.
1 January 2004.
9 February 2004.
3 January 2007. This is the date you visited the site. Like the date of posting of the page, it can be important, especially if the page has changed since your visit. If you revisit the page, you should ıpdate your date of access.

The URL. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/
instructor/multicultural.htm>.
<http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/
general/evaluating/counterfeit.html>.
<http://mediastudy.com/articles/
av12-11-03.html>.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wind_farm&oldid=95091794>. Give the URL of the page you use. Prefer to copy and paste the URL, rather than typing it into your document. Just one mistake will make for a different URL - or for one which does not exist.

introduction
from a book from a journal / magazine / newspaper from a website from an online journal

putting it all together
more citation tips

Return to Now read On Home Page To the top of this page

John Royce, BA, MLib, MCLIP
Library Director, Robert College
Arnavutköy, TR-34345 Istanbul, Turkey.

The URL of this page is http://www.read2live.com/elementsweb.html
It was last revised on 10 January 2007.

introduction	from a book	from a journal / magazine / newspaper	from a website	from an online journal
		putting it all together	more citation tips

Element	Example	How does the element help us?
The author/s	Kirk, Elizabeth. Niman, Michael I.	Last name first (of the first-named author). Listed in alphabetical order, to make it easy to find the name you are looking for. The author now gets the credit for the words or ideas you have used. The name of the author may not be shown on the page you use; you might have to find the "title page" or the last page of a series. Make the effort!
The page title.	“How to choose... “Information and its counterfeits:... “E-washing history... “Wind farm.”	Page titles: the inverted commas show that it is a page title and not the title of a full work. When the author is not known, the page title is used for the alphabetical list of Works Cited. The title used in the title bar at the top of the browser is preferred, but there is no standardization; many page designers fail to use this area - in which case use the article title as given on the page.
Title of work.	Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.	Not every site or set of pages has a title, but if there is on, use it.
Date of posting / latest revision.	n.d. 2001. 19 December 2003. 18 Dec 2006, 14:09 UTC.	The date of posting or latest revision can be very important, and not only to show the currency of your information. If what your reader finds at the URL you give is different to your quotation or paraphrase, it could be because new information has been posted. In Wikipedia, where pages are frequently edited, sometimes several times a day, the date and the time of posting can be important. The date of posting may not be shown on the page you use; you might have to find the "title page" or the last page of a series. Make the effort!
Publisher.	Scholastic Publications. The Sheridan Libraries, Johns Hopkins University. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.	Not every web page has a publisher. If there is one, and especially if the publisher is well known or will give your quotation or paraphrase extra authority, use it.
Date of access.	30 January 2006. 1 January 2004. 9 February 2004. 3 January 2007.	This is the date you visited the site. Like the date of posting of the page, it can be important, especially if the page has changed since your visit. If you revisit the page, you should ıpdate your date of access.
The URL.	<http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/ instructor/multicultural.htm>. <http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/ general/evaluating/counterfeit.html>. <http://mediastudy.com/articles/ av12-11-03.html>. <http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wind_farm&oldid=95091794>.	Give the URL of the page you use. Prefer to copy and paste the URL, rather than typing it into your document. Just one mistake will make for a different URL - or for one which does not exist.