MLA style is usually used in English and the humanities. MLA stands for the Modern Language Association.
Why Cite?
When to Cite
How to Cite
MLA citation requires two parts:
When citing information, you need to provide the name of the database vs. the database brand name.
The MLA Handbook is the official guide to citing in MLA format.
MLA Handbook by
The Modern Language Association, the authority on research and writing, takes a fresh look at documenting sources in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. Works are published today in a dizzying range of formats. A book, for example, may be read in print, online, or as an e-book--or perhaps listened to in an audio version. On the Web, modes of publication are regularly invented, combined, and modified. Previous editions of the MLA Handbookprovided separate instructions for each format, and additional instructions were required for new formats. In this groundbreaking new edition of its best-selling handbook, the MLA recommends instead one universal set of guidelines, which writers can apply to any type of source. Shorter and redesigned for easy use, the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook guides writers through the principles behind evaluating sources for their research. It then shows them how to cite sources in their writing and create useful entries for the works-cited list. More than just a new edition, this is a new MLA style.
Use the following links to learn how to format a paper.
Use the following links to help you cite sources within the text of your paper.
Use the following handout and websites to find examples for citing your sources at the end of of your paper.
You can also try to use free online tools to help you create citations in a variety of formats, including MLA, however, all online citation tools, including those available in the library databases, are not completely accurate. You will have to make make edits to ensure your citations are in the proper format.