How to Cite a Translated Book

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If a work was originally published in an unfamiliar language, you may only be able to read it by using a later translation. When referencing a translated book in a research paper or report, you generally need to list both the original author and the translator in your citation. The format for doing this varies depending on whether you're using the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), or Chicago citation style.

Steps

MLA

Start with either the author or translator. If you're using the text of the book, list the original author first. If you're studying translation skill and technique, list the translator first. Type the last name, then a comma, then the first name. Place a period after the name. Original author example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Translator example: Pevear, Richard and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators.

Provide the title of the book in italics. After the name, type the translated title of the book and any subtitle. Use title case, capitalizing nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs. Place a period after the title. Original author example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov. Translator example: Pevear, Richard and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators. The Brothers Karamazov.

Add the name you didn't put first. After the title, list the translator's name if you started your citation with the original author's name. If you listed the translator's name first, provide the name of the original author. Place a comma after the name. Original author example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov. Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, Translator example: Pevear, Richard and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators. The Brothers Karamazov. By Fyodor Dostoevsky,

Conclude with publication information. Following the comma, type the name of the publisher of the translation. Place a comma after the publisher's name, then type the year the translation was published. Place a period to close out your citation. Original author example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov. Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002. Translator example: Pevear, Richard and Larissa Volokhonsky, translators. The Brothers Karamazov. By Fyodor Dostoevsky, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002.

Use the name you put first in parenthetical citations. Your in-text citation is meant to direct your reader to the full citation in your "Works Cited." If you listed the translator first, your parenthetical should have the name of the translator along with the page number for the material you're citing. If you have the original author's name first in your "Works Cited" entry, use their name in your parenthetical citation as well. Original author example: (Dostoevsky 112) Translator example: (Pevear and Volokhonsky 112)

APA

Start with the name of the original author. Type the last name of the original author, them a comma, then the author's first initial. If a middle initial is also given, you can include that as well, but it isn't necessary. The period after the initial also serves as the period to close this portion of your citation. Example: Dostoevsky, F.

Add the year of the translation's publication. For the first year of publication, you want the year the book was published that you actually read. Place that year in parentheses after the original author's name. Put a period after the closing parentheses. Example: Dostoevsky, F. (2002).

Provide the title of the book in italics. After the year of publication, type the title of the book using sentence-case. Only capitalize the first word of the title and any proper nouns. If the book has a subtitle, place a colon at the end of the title and then add the subtitle. Again, capitalize the first word of the subtitle and any proper nouns. Example: Dostoevsky, F. (2002). The Brothers Karamazov

Include the name of the translator in parentheses. After the title, type a space and then type the first initial and last name of the translator in parentheses. The name of the translator should not be italicized. Place a period outside the closing parentheses. Example: Dostoevsky, F. (2002). The Brothers Karamazov (R. Pevear & L. Volokhonsky, Trans.).

List publication information. Follow the names of the translators with the city where the book was published. Place a colon after the name of the city, then type the name of the publisher. Place a period after the name of the publisher. Example: Dostoevsky, F. (2002). The Brothers Karamazov (R. Pevear & L. Volokhonsky, Trans.). New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Put the original publication date at the end of your citation. You should be able to find the original publication date on the back of the title page with the copyright information. In parentheses, type the phrase "Original work published" with the year. Example: Dostoevsky, F. (2002). The Brothers Karamazov (R. Pevear & L. Volokhonsky, Trans.). New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. (Original work published 1879)

Include both publication years in your parenthetical citation. APA in-text citations use the last name of the author and the date of publication. For translated books, include first the original year of publication, then type a slash, and type the year the translation was published. Example: (Dostoevsky, 1879/2002) If you include a direct quote, your parenthetical citation should also include a page number. For example: (Dostoevsky, 1879/2002, p. 144)

Chicago

Start your bibliographic entry with the name of the original author. Type the original author's last name first, then a comma, then their first name. Place a period after the original author's first name. Example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor.

Type the title of the book in italics. Following the original author's name, type the title of the book using title-case. Generally, this means capitalizing all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs. Place a period at the end of the title. Example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov.

List the translator for the edition you read. Following the title of the book, type the phrase "Translated by" and then list the name of the translator, typing their first name followed by their last name. Place a period at the end of the translator's name. Example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov. Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky.

Close your citation with publication information. Type the city where the book was published, then a colon. Follow the colon with the name of the publisher. Place a comma after the publisher's name, then type the year the translated edition was published. Close your citation with a period. Example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov. Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002.

Change the format for footnotes in text. In footnotes, the author's name is listed with their first name first. Additionally, commas are typically used to separate parts of the citation instead of periods. Publication information is placed in parentheses. the specific page number to which the footnote refers is placed after the publication information. Example: Dostoevsky, Fyodor, The Brothers Karamazov, trans. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002), 114.