Turabian Citation Guide with Examples

Turabian style comes from Kate L. Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, now in its 9th edition (2018). It adapts the Chicago Manual of Style for students and offers two systems: notes-bibliography and author-date.

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Updated 21 October 2026 · EssayWriting.com editorial team

Key takeaways

Turabian 9 (2018) adapts Chicago style for student papers.
Choose notes-bibliography for humanities or author-date for sciences.
Use short notes instead of ibid. for repeated citations unless your instructor prefers ibid.

Which Turabian system should you use?

	Notes-bibliography	Author-date
Common in	History, literature, arts, religion	Sciences and social sciences
In-text	Superscript number linking to a footnote or endnote	(Lopez 2021, 34)
Source list	Bibliography	Reference list

Use the system your instructor names. The rest of this guide focuses on notes-bibliography, the more distinctive system.

How notes-bibliography works

Each time you use a source, add a superscript number at the end of the clause or sentence, after punctuation. The number links to a note at the bottom of the page (footnote) or end of the paper (endnote). The first note for a source is a full note; later notes are short notes. At the end, a bibliography lists every source alphabetically.

Turabian 9 recommends short notes rather than "ibid." for repeated citations, though some instructors still accept ibid.

Worked examples

Sources are fictional examples created to show the format.

Book

Full note: 1. Maria Lopez, The Quiet Coast, 2nd ed. (New York: Harbor Press, 2021), 34.

Short note: 2. Lopez, Quiet Coast, 36.

Bibliography: Lopez, Maria. The Quiet Coast. 2nd ed. New York: Harbor Press, 2021.

Chapter in an edited book

Full note: 3. James Okoro, "Tides and Trade," in Coastal Histories, ed. Anna Berg (Northfield: Northfield University Press, 2019), 50.

Short note: 4. Okoro, "Tides and Trade," 52.

Bibliography: Okoro, James. "Tides and Trade." In Coastal Histories, edited by Anna Berg, 45-62. Northfield: Northfield University Press, 2019.

Journal article

Full note: 5. Priya Shah and Daniel Kim, "Sleep and Memory in First-Year Students," Journal of Student Health 18, no. 2 (2023): 105, https://doi.org/10.1234/jsh.2023.018.

Short note: 6. Shah and Kim, "Sleep and Memory," 107.

Bibliography: Shah, Priya, and Daniel Kim. "Sleep and Memory in First-Year Students." Journal of Student Health 18, no. 2 (2023): 101-18. https://doi.org/10.1234/jsh.2023.018.

Website

Full note: 7. "Healthy Sleep Habits," Sleep Facts Network, June 10, 2023, https://www.sleepfacts.example/habits.

Bibliography: Sleep Facts Network. "Healthy Sleep Habits." June 10, 2023. https://www.sleepfacts.example/habits.

Newspaper article

Full note: 8. Tom Reyes, "City Expands Night Bus Routes," Daily Ledger, March 4, 2024.

Short note: 9. Reyes, "Night Bus Routes."

Notes vs bibliography: spot the differences

Feature	Note	Bibliography
Author name	First name first	Surname first (first author only)
Separators	Commas, publication facts in parentheses	Full stops between main elements
Pages	The specific page cited	Full page range for articles and chapters
Indent	First line indented	Hanging indent

Author-date in brief

In-text: (Lopez 2021, 34)

Reference list: Lopez, Maria. 2021. The Quiet Coast. 2nd ed. New York: Harbor Press.

Note there is no comma between author and year in the parenthetical, and the year comes right after the author in the reference list.

Paper format basics

Margins of at least 1 inch; a readable font such as Times New Roman, 12 point.
Double-space the text; single-space notes and bibliography entries internally with a blank line between entries.
Page numbers in the header or footer, consistently placed.
A title page for class papers if your instructor asks; Turabian provides a model.

Turabian vs Chicago

Turabian follows the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition) closely but is written for students, with guidance on research and paper formatting and simplified options. If your instructor says "Chicago" for a student paper, Turabian's rules will almost always satisfy it, but check.

Footnote formatting details

Place the superscript number after punctuation, except dashes.
Number notes consecutively through the paper; do not restart on each page.
Footnotes are single-spaced internally with a blank line between notes, and the first line is indented.
Use a short note for every citation after the first to the same source.

Short note patterns

Source	Short note
Book	Surname, Short Title, page.
Article or chapter	Surname, "Short Title," page.
Two authors	Surname and Surname, Short Title, page.
Four or more authors	Surname et al., Short Title, page.

A short title is usually up to four key words from the full title.

Bibliography formatting

Title the page "Bibliography" and centre the heading.
List entries alphabetically by first author's surname.
Use a hanging indent and single-space each entry, with a blank line between entries.
For two or more works by the same author, Turabian allows a 3-em dash in place of the name after the first entry.

Turabian checklist

One system used throughout (notes-bibliography or author-date).
Full note on first citation, short notes afterwards.
Bibliography includes every source cited in notes.
Notes and bibliography use their different punctuation patterns.
Page numbers in notes match the passage cited.

Quick answers to common questions

Do I need a title page in Turabian?

Turabian provides a model title page for class papers; use it if your instructor asks for one.

Can I use endnotes instead of footnotes?

Yes. Turabian allows either, as long as you are consistent.

Frequently asked questions

What is the current edition of Turabian?

The 9th edition of A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, published in 2018.

Is Turabian the same as Chicago?

Turabian is based on the Chicago Manual of Style and adapted for students. The rules are very close.

Does Turabian use ibid.?

Turabian 9 recommends short notes instead of ibid. for repeated citations, though some instructors accept ibid.

Does Turabian use footnotes?

The notes-bibliography system uses footnotes or endnotes. The author-date system uses parenthetical citations instead.

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