Citing The Constitution: Turabian Style Guide

how do you cite the constitution in turabian

The Turabian citation style, also known as the parenthetical/reference list style, is a widely used format for academic writing. When citing the US Constitution in Turabian style, it's important to note that it should only be cited in parenthetical citations and not included in the reference list or bibliography. This is because the US Constitution is considered a source that can be omitted from a bibliography, along with other sources such as newspaper articles, abstracts, and legal cases. When citing the US Constitution in-text, you should include key source information such as the article or amendment number, section, and clause if relevant. For example, The US Constitution, in Article 1, Section 9, forbids... or The First Amendment.... It's important to spell out all terms in the parenthetical citation. Additionally, when citing statutes, which are bills or resolutions that have been passed into law, you can reference the annual bound volumes of the United States Statutes at Large or the United States Code.

Characteristics Values
Citing style Parenthetical/Reference List
In-text citation Include key source information next to the reference to that source in parentheses
Reference list Do not include the U.S. Constitution in the reference list
In-text citation format The U.S. Constitution, in article 1, section 9, forbids... OR The First Amendment...
Bibliography Include newspaper articles, abstracts, brief reports, interviews, personal communications, blogs, social network postings, and legal cases
Bibliography entry Begin with 'US Congress' followed by 'Senate' or 'House of Representatives.' This can be simplified to 'US Senate' or 'US House.'
Bibliography entry elements Committee and subcommittee, title of the document, number of Congress and session ('Cong.' and 'sess.'), date of publication, and number and description of the document
Bibliography entry for British documents End citations with the phrase "United Kingdom" in parenthesis, unless it is obvious from the context
No place of publication Use the abbreviation n.p. (or N.p. if following a period) before the publisher’s name
No date of publication Use the abbreviation n.d. in the publication details
No date listed Leave it out unless you can find that information available in a reliable source
Works from the web Include the date accessed
Title of Document Capitalize the first letter of every important word
Include what comes after the colon (also known as the subtitle)
Works Cited list Double spaced with a hanging indent

cycivic

Citing the U.S. Constitution: Only use parenthetical citations, not in the reference list

When citing the U.S. Constitution in Turabian style, it is important to note that it should only be cited using parenthetical in-text citations and not in the reference list or bibliography. This is a unique feature of citing the U.S. Constitution, as most sources are typically included in a reference list or bibliography.

The Turabian citation style, also known as the parenthetical/reference list style, involves including key source information next to the reference in parentheses within the text of your paper. When citing the U.S. Constitution, you should spell out all terms in the parenthetical citation. For example, "The U.S. Constitution, in Article 1, Section 9, forbids..." or "The First Amendment..."

It is important to include the relevant article or amendment, section, and if applicable, the clause when citing the U.S. Constitution. This ensures that your citation is clear and specific. Statutes, which are bills or resolutions that have been passed into law, are also cited in the notes and can be found in the United States Statutes at Large since 1874.

Additionally, when citing sources in the Turabian style, it is crucial to include the date you accessed the material, especially if there is no specific date provided for the source. This is applicable to web sources, as information on the web can be changed or removed at any time.

In summary, when citing the U.S. Constitution in Turabian style, use parenthetical in-text citations with relevant article, amendment, section, and clause information. Remember that the U.S. Constitution is one of the sources that should not be included in your reference list or bibliography.

cycivic

Citing British documents: Similar to U.S. documents, but end with United Kingdom

The Turabian citation style is divided into two varieties: notes and bibliography (or simply notes) and author-date. Notes and bibliography is popular in the humanities, including literature, history, and the arts, and involves citing sources in footnotes or endnotes. Each note corresponds to a raised (superscript) number in the text, and sources are listed in a separate bibliography. This system is flexible and can accommodate a wide range of sources. On the other hand, the author-date style is more common in the physical, natural, and social sciences, where the sources are cited in the text itself, with key source information included in parentheses next to the reference.

When citing British documents in Turabian style, they are treated similarly to U.S. documents. Unpublished British documents can be found in the National Archives (NA) or British Library (BL) in London, and all are cataloged online. When citing these sources, remember to include the name of the government body, such as legislative, executive, court bureau, commission, or board. For example, a citation for a British document could look like this:

> United Kingdom. House of Commons. Homeland Security Act. 107th Cong., 2nd sess., 2002, HR Rep. 107-609, pt. 1, 11-12.

When citing British legal cases, follow a similar format to U.S. legal cases. Provide the full case name in italics, followed by the volume number, name of the reporter, opening page number, abbreviated court name, and date. For example:

> United Kingdom. Case Name (in italics), volume number, reporter abbreviation, page number-page number, court abbreviation, year.

Remember to adapt the examples provided here based on the specific type of source you are citing, such as a pamphlet, report, letter, or web source. Ensure that you include all the relevant information necessary for your reader to identify and locate your sources.

cycivic

Citing Acts of Parliament: Only cite in notes, unless critical to your argument

When citing Acts of Parliament in Turabian style, there are a few guidelines to follow. Firstly, Acts of Parliament should typically only be cited in footnotes or endnotes, and not in the bibliography or reference list, unless the specific Act is critical to your argument or frequently cited.

For British Acts, those passed before 1963 are cited by regnal year, the monarch's name (abbreviated), and an ordinal (Arabic numeral). For example, an Act passed in the 12th year of Queen Elizabeth II's reign would be cited as '12 Eliz. 2'.

When citing the US Constitution, it should only be cited in notes or in-text citations, and not included in the bibliography or reference list. Include the article or amendment number, section, and if relevant, the clause. For example: "The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees freedom of speech".

Legal cases are cited similarly, with the full case name in italics, followed by the volume number, name of the reporter, ordinal series number, opening page number, abbreviated name of the court, and date. For example: "Roe v. Wade, 410 US 113, 152 (1973)".

It is important to note that different institutions may have specific variations or additional requirements for Turabian style citations, so it is always advisable to consult the specific guidelines provided by your institution or refer to the Turabian manual for extensive information on citing legal documents.

cycivic

Citing U.S. Statutes: Cite in the United States Code, using section symbol §

The United States Code is the official code for federal statutes. It is updated annually and a new print edition is published every six years. The United States Code Annotated and the United States Code Service are two of the unofficial federal codes. The United States Code Annotated is published by West, and the United States Code Service is published by LexisNexis.

The official way to cite U.S. statutes is to cite them in the United States Code, using the section symbol §. The citation should include the abbreviation of the code used (U.S.C.), followed by the section symbol (§) and the section number containing the statute. The year of the code edition is optional if citing the current code. For example, if you were writing about civil rights in public health and welfare law and wanted to reference a statute discussing civil actions for deprivation of rights, the proper citation would be: 42 U.S.C. § 1983.

In some instances, you may need to give the name of the statute within the citation. This may be because you are citing an entire act as codified in the United States Code, if the statute is commonly cited that way, or if the information aids in the identification of the material cited. For example, the citation for the Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) would be 28 U.S.C. § 1350 (2018).

If a particular statute has been amended, or a new statute has been enacted, and the changes appear in a supplement or pocket part, you will need to indicate this in the citation. If the statute is completely amended such that the current version appears only in the supplement, the citation is formatted as follows: [Title] [Code] § [Section] ([Year]), [Supplement] [Volume Number] [Page Range]. If the section is only partially updated (i.e., parts of the current version appear in both the main volume and the supplement), the citation is formatted as follows: [Title] [Code] § [Section] ([Year]), [Supplement] [Volume Number] [Page Range], [Edition Year] [Edition].

cycivic

Citing web sources: Include the date accessed in your citation, as content changes

When citing web sources, it is important to include the date accessed, as online content is subject to change over time. This is true for various citation styles, including APA and MLA.

APA Style

The APA Publication Manual 7th edition recommends including the year, month, and date in references whenever possible. If the month and date are unavailable, use the year of publication.

For frequently updated sources, such as Wikipedia, it is important to indicate when the information was retrieved to allow readers to find the cited version. In such cases, link to the archived version of the page by accessing the "View History" option and selecting the desired date/timestamp.

Additionally, APA recommends providing a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) instead of a URL whenever possible, as DOIs provide stable and long-lasting links for online articles.

MLA Style

While not mandatory, including the date accessed is highly recommended in the MLA citation style, especially when dealing with frequently updated pages or those without a visible copyright date.

To ensure access to the specific version of the web page, it is advisable to keep personal copies of important electronic information by downloading or printing key documents. Using the Bookmark function in your web browser can also help build a convenient reference list for your sources.

When citing book content from a webpage, include the artist's name, work of art in italics, date of creation, institution, city, website name in italics, and date accessed.

By including the date accessed and other relevant information, you enhance the precision of your citations and make it easier for readers to locate the same sources.

Frequently asked questions

The US Constitution should be cited in notes or parenthetical citations only and should not be included in the bibliography. Include the article or amendment, section, and if relevant, the clause.

When using the parenthetical/reference list Turabian citation style, you identify a source in the text (in-text) of your paper by including key source information next to the reference to that source in parentheses. Always spell out all terms in full.

Acts of Parliament should usually only be cited in notes, unless it is critical to your argument or frequently cited. Acts from before 1963 are cited by the regnal year, the monarch's name (abbreviated), and the ordinal (Arabic numeral).

Cite statutes in the notes only. Section numbers are preceded by the section symbol (§).

Written by
Reviewed by
Share this post
Print
Did this article help you?

Leave a comment