Citing sources

Using the citation template

Citation templates are used to format citations in a consistent way. See the CitationSandbox for a working example and space for testing.

Use in footnotes

For a citation to appear in a footnote, it needs to be enclosed in "ref" tags. You can add these by typing <ref> at the front of the citation and </ref> at the end.

Note, if this is a new page or if there are not already references previously cited, it is necessary to create a "References" section at the end of the page, thus:

== References ==

<references />

Using the same footnote multiple times

Optionally, one may add the name attribute by using <ref name=name>details of the citation</ref>. Thereafter, the same footnote may be used multiple times by adding <ref name=name/>.

Note well that named references begin with <ref instead of the usual <ref>.

When choosing the name, make sure that it is reasonably short, say four letters, otherwise the edit will be rejected.

As an example, see Assam Valley Light Horse

What information to include

Listed below is the information which a typical inline citation or general reference will provide, though other details may be added as necessary. This information is included in order to identify the source, assist readers in finding it, and (in the case of inline citations) indicate the place in the source where the information is to be found.

Examples

Books

Citations for books typically include:

• name of the author(s)
• title of the book in italics
• volume when appropriate
• city of publication is optional
• name of the publisher
• year of publication
• chapter or page number(s) where appropriate
• ISBN is optional

Citations for individually authored chapters in books typically include:

• name of author
• the title of the chapter
• name of the book's editor
• name of book and other details as above
• the chapter number or page numbers for the chapter are optional

Journal articles

Citations for journal articles typically include:

• name of the author(s)
• year and sometimes month of publication
• title of the article within quotation marks
• name of the journal in italics
• volume number, issue number, and page numbers (article numbers in some electronic journals)

Newspaper articles

Citations for newspaper articles typically include:

• byline (author's name), if any
• title of the article within quotation marks
• name of the newspaper in italics
• city of publication (if not included in name of newspaper), in parentheses
• date of publication
• page number(s) are optional

Webpages

Citations for World Wide Web pages should include:

• URL of the webpage
• name of the author(s)
• title of the article within quotation marks
• name of the website
• date of publication
• page number(s) (if applicable)
• the date you retrieved (or accessed) the webpage (required if the publication date is unknown)

Example

<ref>Ian Macdonnell. [http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/india/2010-01/1264031553 "MORE HELPFUL INFORMATION ...Allowance for Eurasianwives."], ''Rootsweb India Mailing List'', 21 Jan 2010. Retrieved on 11 April 2014.</ref>