Template:Citation

Template documentation

Template:For2 The Citation template generates a citation for a book, periodical, contribution in a collective work, patent, or a web page. It determines the citation type by examining which parameters are used.

If invoked with the right parameters, this template produces output identical to that of the Cite templates, such as {{cite book}} and {{cite web}}. The default behavior sometimes differs from that of the Cite templates; for example, this template by default generates anchors for Harvard references whereas the Cite templates do not (although they can be made to do so), and this template by default uses commas to separate some fields that the Cite templates separate with periods (full stops).

All parameter names are lowercase.

Anchored citations

This template can generate a citation that can be combined with shortened footnotes or parenthetical referencing. It does this by creating an HTML anchor containing an ID. The special parameter Template:Para generates an ID suitable for Harvard referencing templates such as {{harv}} as specified in the next section; this is the default for the {{citation}} template. If an empty Template:Para is given, no anchor is generated; this is the default for the Cite templates such as {{cite book}} and {{cite news}}. You can also specify the ID directly, using the Template:Para parameter. For example, suppose an article's References section contains the markup:

• {{Citation |author=Sigmund Freud |title=Civilization and Its Discontents |year=1930 |ref=CivDis}}

which generates the citation:

• Sigmund Freud (1930), Civilization and Its Discontents 

Then, the markup "([[#CivDis|Freud 1930]])" generates a parenthetical reference "(Freud 1930)" containing a wikilink to the citation (try clicking on the wikilink).

Anchors for Harvard referencing templates

IDs compatible with Harvard referencing templates such as {{harv}} are computed from the last names of the authors and the year of the cited source. For example, the markup "{{harv|Wright|Evans|1851|p=ix}}" generates the Harvard reference "Template:Harv", which wikilinks to the citation whose markup and appearance are shown below:

• {{Citation |last1=Wright |first1=Thomas |last2=Evans |first2=R.H. |title=Historical and Descriptive Account of the Caricatures of James Gillray |location=London |publisher=Henry G. Bohn |year=1851 |oclc=59510372 }}
• Wright, Thomas; Evans, R.H. (1851), Historical and Descriptive Account of the Caricatures of James Gillray, London: Henry G. Bohn, OCLC 59510372 

In this example the {{citation}} template defines, and the {{harv}} template uses, the HTML ID "CITEREFWrightEvans1851", composed by concatenating the string "CITEREF" with the last names of the authors and the year. The {{harvid}} template can be used to generate such IDs, for example, {{harvid|Wright|Evans|1851}} generates "Template:Harvid".

The names of only the first four authors are used; other author names are not concatenated to the ID. If no author names are given, editor names are used instead. For patents, inventor names are used instead of authors or editors. If these names are not given, this template does not generate an anchor.

Last names are used, as specified by the parameters Template:Para (or Template:Para), Template:Para, Template:Para, and Template:Para, and similarly for Template:Para etc. and for Template:Para etc. If a full name is given but no last name is specified, this template falls back on the full name, but this usage is not recommended. For example, in "{{Citation |author=Sigmund Freud |title=The Ego and the Id |year=1923}}" no last name is given, so this citation cannot be combined with the Harvard reference "{{harv|Freud|1923}}". To make these {{citation}} and {{harv}} invocations compatible, either replace "Template:Para" with "Template:Para Template:Para", or add "Template:Para" to the {{citation}} invocation, or add the same ref parameter (say, "Template:Para") to both the {{citation}} and the {{harv}} invocations.

Similarly, the year is used, as specified by Template:Para. If no year is given, this template attempts to derive the year from Template:Para (or, if no date is given, from Template:Para) by applying the MediaWiki #time function. This heuristic works with many common date formats (American, International and YYYY-MM-DD as listed in WP:MOS) but may not work as expected with other formats, so when in doubt it may be safer to use Template:Para. Note that if only a year, say 2005, is known you must use Template:Para rather than Template:Para.

IDs must be unique

Names, years, and hand-specified IDs must be chosen so that the IDs are unique within a page; otherwise the HTML will not conform to the W3C standards, and any references to the citations will not work reliably. For example, suppose a page contains the following two citations with {{harv}}-compatible IDs:

• Montes, G; Halterman, JS (2008a), "Association of childhood autism spectrum disorders and loss of family income", Pediatrics 121 (4): e821–6, doi:10.1542/peds.2007-1594, PMID 18381511, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/121/4/e821 

• Montes, G; Halterman, JS (2008b), "Child care problems and employment among families with preschool-aged children with autism in the United States", Pediatrics 122 (1): e202–8, doi:10.1542/peds.2007-3037, PMID 18595965, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/122/1/e202 

If these citations were altered to say "2008" rather than "2008a" and "2008b", the resulting page would not work, because the two different citations would both attempt to use the ID "CITEREFMontesHalterman2008". To avoid this problem, distinguish the citations by appending suffixes to the years, e.g., "Template:Para" and "Template:Para", as was done above. Any Harvard references to these citations should use years with the same suffixes.

It is good practice to verify that a page does not contain duplicate IDs by using the W3C Markup Validation Service; see External links.

Citing books

Parameters (all are optional)

{{Citation |last= |first= |author= |authorlink= |coauthors= |firstn=,lastn=,authorn= |author-separator= |editor= |editorn= |editorn-last= |editorn-first= |editor-link= |editorn-link= |others= |title= |url= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |format= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |volume= |date= |origyear= |year= |month= |publisher= |location= |language= |isbn= |oclc= |doi= |doi_inactivedate= |bibcode= |id= |page= |pages= |nopp= |at= |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= |laysummary= |laydate= |separator= |postscript= |lastauthoramp= |ref= }}

last (or last1): The author's surname or last name. first (or first1): The author's first or given name(s). author (or author1): The author's name, if not in the last/first format. author-link (or author1-link): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. last2, last3, last4: The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. first2, first3, first4: The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. author2, author3, author4: The second, third, and fourth authors' names, if applicable. author2-link, author3-link, author4-link: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. author-separator: override the default semi-colon that separates authors' names. author-name-separator: override the default comma that separates authors' names. display-authors: Truncate the list of authors at an arbitrary point with "et al". Still include the first 9 authors to allow metadata to be generated. publication-date (or date): Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> of publication. date: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> of authorship, if different from date of publication. If only date is used, it will be treated as the date of publication. year: Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from Template:Harvard citation. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) origyear: Year of first publication, if different. title: Title of the book. If the title includes [square brackets], these must be encoded as "&#91;" for "[" and "&#93;" for "]" edition: Number or name of the edition, if not the first; for example: edition=2nd. volume: The volume number of a multi-volume book. series: The book series of which this book is a part. publication-place (or place): The city of publication. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: place=Paris, TX (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. place: City in which the work was made, if different from the city of publication. If only place is used, it will be treated as the city of publication. publisher: The name of the publisher. Omit terms such as Publishers, Co., Inc., Ltd., etc., but retain the words Books or Press. pages: For use when multiple pages are cited. Adds "pp." before the page numbers. Do not use with page. page: For use when one page is cited. Adds "p." before the page number. Do not use with pages. nopp: if set to any value, page=/pages= do not generate 'p.' or 'pp.'. E.g. nopp=true. Using at= has the same effect. at: Position within the resource when page=/pages= is inappropriate, e.g. at=para. 14 (when citing a source without page numbers) or at=02:56 (a film or audio timestamp), or at=no. 456 (something in a numbered list). This parameter is ignored if page=/pages= is specified. id: Identifier such as ISBN 1–111–22222–9 isbn: Use this parameter if the book has an ISBN. doi: A digital object identifier such as 10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001. doi_inactivedate: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> on which the DOI was observed to be not functioning. oclc: Online Computer Library Center ID number, such as 3185581 (superfluous when ISBN is given). url: An url of an online location where the book can be found. archive parameters (if used, must be used both of them together) archiveurl: The URL of an archived copy of a web page, if (or in case) the url becomes unavailable. Typically used to refer to services like WebCite and Archive.org. archivedate: Date when the item was archived. Should not be wikilinked. accessdate: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> when the url was accessed. separator: specifies the punctuation mark used to separate certain fields. This defaults to a comma; the 'Cite xxx' family of templates uses a period. laysummary: URL of a lay summary, which could be in a popular science magazine or newspaper. laydate: The date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> of publication or, where this is not available, date of retrieval of the lay summary. postscript: Set terminal punctuation. Omit or leave blank to remove the trailing full stop. Punctuation specified by this parameter will appear within the cite span, and consequently before any icons added by metadata-using software (e.g. library browser plugins). Hence this parameter should be used instead of manually appending data to the citation. This parameter is ignored if Template:Para is specified, when Template:Para is forced. lastauthoramp: If supplied, whether or not assigned a value, places an ampersand (&) before the last name of final author, if more than one author is supplied. Recommended usage is lastauthoramp=yes. ref: ID for Harvard references; see Anchors for Harvard referencing templates.

Examples

One author	{{ Citation | last=Turner | first=O. | title=History of the Pioneer Settlement of Phelps and Gorham's Purchase, and Morris' Reserve | publisher=William Alling | place=Rochester, New York | year=1851 | url = http://olivercowdery.com/texts/1851Trn1.htm#turn1851 }}	Turner, O. (1851), History of the Pioneer Settlement of Phelps and Gorham's Purchase, and Morris' Reserve, Rochester, New York: William Alling, http://olivercowdery.com/texts/1851Trn1.htm#turn1851
Three authors, a volume, and an edition. Ampersand (&) forced before final author's name.	{{ Citation | last1=Lincoln | first1=A. | last2=Washington | first2=G. | last3=Adams | first3=J. | lastauthoramp=yes | title=All the Presidents' Names | publisher=The Pentagon | place=Home Base, New York | volume=XII | edition=2nd | year=2007 }}	Lincoln, A.; Washington, G. & Adams, J. (2007), All the Presidents' Names, XII (2nd ed.), Home Base, New York: The Pentagon

Citing journals, newspapers, magazines, or other periodicals

Parameters

{{Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | publication-date = | date = | year = | title = | periodical = | series = | publication-place = | place = | publisher = | volume = | issue = | pages = | page = | at = | url = | archiveurl = | archivedate = | issn = | pmid = | pmc = | doi = | oclc = | accessdate = | postscript = | ref = }}

Template:Citation parameter legend

Examples

Journal article	{{Citation | last=Hill | first=Marvin S. | title=Joseph Smith and the 1826 Trial: New Evidence and New Difficulties | journal=BYU Studies | volume=12 | issue=2 | year=1976 | pages=1–8 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/ shop/PDFSRC/12.2Hill.pdf }}	Hill, Marvin S. (1976), "Joseph Smith and the 1826 Trial: New Evidence and New Difficulties", BYU Studies 12 (2): 1–8, https://byustudies.byu.edu/shop/PDFSRC/12.2Hill.pdf
Newspaper article	{{Citation | last=Smith | first=Joseph III | author-link=Joseph Smith III | title=Last Testimony of Sister Emma | newspaper=The Saints' Herald | publication-place=Plano, IL | volume=26 | issue=19 | date=October 1, 1879 | year=1879 | month=October | page=289 | url=http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/ dbroadhu/IL/sain1872.htm#100179 }}	Smith, Joseph III (October 1, 1879), "Last Testimony of Sister Emma", The Saints' Herald (Plano, IL) 26 (19): 289, http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/dbroadhu/IL/sain1872.htm#100179

Citing edited books, or parts of edited books, including encyclopedias and encyclopedia articles

Parameters

{{Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | year = | date = | publication-date = | contribution = | contribution-url = | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | editor2-last = | editor2-first = | editor2-link = | title = | edition = | series = | place = | publication-place = | publisher = | volume = | pages = | id = | isbn = | doi = | oclc = | url = | ref = }}

last (or last1): The first author's surname or last name. first (or first1): The first author's first or given name(s). author (or author1): The author's name, if not in the last/first format. author-link (or author1-link): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. last2, last3, last4: The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. first2, first3, first4: The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. author2, author3, author4: The second, third, and fourth authors' names, if applicable. author2-link, author3-link, author4-link: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. year: Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from Template:Harvard citation. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) date: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> of authorship or publication. publication-date: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> of publication (if different from date). contribution (or chapter): Title of the contribution or chapter. contribution-url (or chapter-url): URL of the contribution or chapter. editor-last (or editor1-last): The first editor's surname or last name. editor-first (or editor1-first): The first editor's first or given name(s). editor-link (or editor1-link): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first editor. editor2-last, editor3-last, editor4-last: The second, third, and fourth editor' surname or last name, if applicable. editor2-first, editor3-first, editor4-first: The second, third, and fourth editors' first or given name(s), if applicable. editor2-link, editor3-link, editor4-link: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth editor, if applicable. title: Title of the book or compilation. If the title includes [square brackets], these must be encoded as "&#91;" for "[" and "&#93;" for "]" edition: Number or name of the edition, if not the first; for example: edition=2nd. series: Series of which this periodical is a part. volume: The volume number of a multi-volume book or compilation. place (or location): The place where the article, encyclopedia entry, or other included item was created. Usually, this is collective work's city of publication; if not, then use the separate publication-place parameter. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: place=Paris, TX (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. publication-place. The place where the collective work was published (if different from place or location). publisher: The name of the publisher. Omit terms such as Publishers, Co., Inc., Ltd., etc., but retain the words Books or Press. id: Identifier such as ISBN 1–111–22222–9 isbn: Use this parameter if the book or compilation has an ISBN. doi: A digital object identifier such as 10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001. oclc: Online Computer Library Center ID number, such as 3185581 (superfluous when ISBN is given). url: An url of an online location where the source being cited can be found. accessdate: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> when the url was accessed. The access date is only shown if "Template:Para" is used. The "Template:Para" has no effect if "Template:Para" is used. ref: ID for Harvard references; see Anchors for Harvard referencing templates.

Examples

Manuscript published in an edited compilation	{{Citation | last=Bidamon | first=Emma Smith | author-link=Emma Hale Smith | chapter=Letter to Emma S. Pilgrim | date=March 27, 1876 | year=1876 | editor-last=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1–56085–072–8 }}	Bidamon, Emma Smith (March 27, 1876), "Letter to Emma S. Pilgrim", in Vogel, Dan, Early Mormon Documents, 1, Signature Books, 1996, ISBN 1–56085–072–8
Work with an editor but no author	{{Citation | editor-last=Vogel | editor-first=Dan | title=Early Mormon Documents | volume=1 | publisher=Signature Books | publication-date=1996 | isbn=1–56085–072–8 }}	Vogel, Dan, ed. (1996), Early Mormon Documents, 1, Signature Books, ISBN 1–56085–072–8
Encyclopedia article by a named author	{{Citation | last = Kramer | first = Martin | author-link = Martin Kramer | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719–720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | publication-date = 1999 | contribution-url = http:// www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ BernardLewis.htm }}	Kramer, Martin (1999), "Bernard Lewis", in Boyd, Kelley, Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing, 1, London: Fitzroy Dearborn, pp. 719–720, http://www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/BernardLewis.htm
Encyclopedia article with no named author	{{Citation | contribution = Bernard Lewis | editor-last = Boyd | editor-first = Kelley | title = Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing | volume = 1 | pages = 719–720 | publisher = Fitzroy Dearborn | place = London | year = 1999 | contribution-url = http:// www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/ BernardLewis.htm }}	Boyd, Kelley, ed. (1999), "Bernard Lewis", Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing, 1, London: Fitzroy Dearborn, pp. 719–720, http://www.geocities.com/martinkramerorg/BernardLewis.htm

Citing contributions, republications, or edited quotations in a periodical article

Parameters

{{Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | year = | date = | publication-date = | contribution = | contribution-url = | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | editor2-last = | editor2-first = | editor2-link = | title = | periodical = | series = | volume = | issue = | pages = | place = | publication-place = | publisher = | id = | issn = | doi = | oclc = | url = | accessdate = | ref = }}

last (or last1): The first author's surname or last name. first (or first1): The first author's first or given name(s). author (or author1): The author's name, if not in the last/first format. author-link (or author1-link): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first author. last2, last3, last4: The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. first2, first3, first4: The second, third, and fourth authors' first or given name(s), if applicable. author2, author3, author4: The second, third, and fourth authors' names, if applicable. author2-link, author3-link, author4-link: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth author, if applicable. year: Year of authorship or publication. (Mandatory for use with links from Template:Harvard citation. In some situations, the template may be able to derive a year from the full date.) date: Date of authorship or publication. publication-date: Date of publication (if different from date). contribution (or chapter): Title of the contribution or chapter. contribution-url (or chapter-url): URL of the contribution or chapter. editor-last (or editor1-last): The first editor's surname or last name. editor-first (or editor2-first): The first editor's first or given name(s). editor-link (or editor1-link): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first editor. editor2-last, editor3-last, editor4-last: The second, third, and fourth editor' surname or last name, if applicable. editor2-first, editor3-first, editor4-first: The second, third, and fourth editors' first or given name(s), if applicable. editor2-link, editor3-link, editor4-link: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth editor, if applicable. title: Title of the book or compilation. If the title includes [square brackets], these must be encoded as "&#91;" for "[" and "&#93;" for "]" periodical (or journal, newspaper, magazine): Name of the periodical. series: Series of which this periodical is a part. volume: The volume number of the journal. issue (or number): The issue number of the journal. pages (optional): The pages in the issue where the article may be found. place (or location): The place where the article, encyclopedia entry, or other included item was created. Usually, this is collective work's city of publication; if not, then use the separate publication-place parameter. If more than one town/city is listed on the title page, give the first one or the location of the publisher's head office. If the city is not well-known, you may add a county, region, or state. States in the U.S. are denoted by a two-letter code; for example: place=Paris, TX (no period at the end). Where the publisher is a university and the place or location is included in the name of the university, do not use this parameter. publication-place. The place where the collective work was published (if different from place or location). id: Identifier such as ISBN 1–111–22222–9 issn: The eight-digit International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) identifying the journal. doi: A digital object identifier such as 10.1016/j.coi.2004.08.001. oclc: Online Computer Library Center ID number, such as 3185581 (superfluous when ISBN is given). url: An url of an online location where the book or compilation can be found. accessdate: Date<ref group="n" name="dates" /> when the url was accessed. ref: ID for Harvard references; see Anchors for Harvard referencing templates.

Examples

Manuscript edited and published in a journal	{{Citation | last=Knight | first=Joseph, Sr. | year=1833 | editor-last=Jessee | editor-first=Dean | title=Joseph Knight's Recollection of Early Mormon History | journal=BYU Studies | volume=17 | issue=1 | publication-date=1976 | pages=35 | url=https://byustudies.byu.edu/ shop/PDFSRC/17.1Jessee.pdf }}	Knight, Joseph, Sr. (1833), Jessee, Dean, ed., "Joseph Knight's Recollection of Early Mormon History", BYU Studies 17 (1): 35, 1976, https://byustudies.byu.edu/shop/PDFSRC/17.1Jessee.pdf
Manuscript written at one date and place, then published in a periodical at a different date and place with commentary by the editor.	{{Citation | last=Klingensmith | first=Philip | contribution=Affidavit | year=1872 | date=September 5, 1872 | place=Lincoln County, Nevada | title=Mountain Meadows Massacre | editor-last=Toohy | editor-first=Dennis J. | journal=Corinne Daily Reporter | publication-date=September 24, 1872 | publication-place=Corinne, Utah | volume=5 | issue=252 | pages=1 | contribution-url=http:// udn.lib.utah.edu/u?/corinne,5359 }}	Klingensmith, Philip (September 5, 1872), Affidavit, written at Lincoln County, Nevada, in Toohy, Dennis J., "Mountain Meadows Massacre", Corinne Daily Reporter (Corinne, Utah) 5 (252): 1, September 24, 1872, http://udn.lib.utah.edu/u?/corinne,5359

Citing patents

Parameters (all are optional)

{{Citation | inventor-last = | inventor-first = | inventorlink = | inventor2-last = | inventor2-first = | inventorlink2 = | publication-date = | issue-date = | title = | country-code = | description = | patent-number = }}

inventor-last (or inventor1-last): The inventor's surname or last name. inventor-first (or inventor1-first): The inventor's first or given name(s). inventorlink (or inventorlink1): Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the first inventor. inventor2-last, inventor3-last, inventor4-last: The second, third, and fourth authors' surname or last name, if applicable. inventor2-first, inventor3-first, inventor4-first: The second, third, and fourth inventors' first or given name(s), if applicable. inventorlink2, inventorlink3, inventorlink4: Title of an existing Wikipedia article about the second, third, and fourth inventor, if applicable. publication-date: Date of publication or filing. issue-date (or date): Date patent was issued by patent agency. title: Title of the patent. If the title includes [square brackets], these must be encoded as "[" for "[" and "]" for "]" country-code: Two-letter abbreviation of the country issuing the patent. description: Type of patent; shown between country code and number. patent-number: The number of the patent.

Examples

United States patent with multiple inventors

{{Citation | inventor1-last = Degermark | inventor1-first = Mikael | inventor2-last = Brodnik | inventor2-first = Andrej | inventor3-last = Carlsson | inventor3-first = Svante | inventor4-last = Pink | inventor4-first = Stephen | title = Fast routing lookup system using complete prefix tree, bit vector, and pointers in a routing table for determining where to route IP datagrams | issue-date = 2001 | patent-number = 6266706 | country-code = US}}

Template:Citation/patent

Dates

<references group="n"><ref name="dates" group="n">

• The format of dates in the references of an article should use a consistent and unambiguous style. Example formats used in Wikipedia citations include:

• 2009
• 2009-09-14
• 14 September 2009
• September 14, 2009 (with comma)
• 2009 Sep 14
• September 2009
• Sept./Oct. 2009

• As indicated above, month names are sometimes abbreviated (e.g., September to "Sept" or "Sept." or "Sep" or "Sep.")
• Dates should not be linked in references.
• Please see Wikipedia:Manual of Style (dates and numbers)#Dates for more guidance about formatting dates.

</ref></references>