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9 Reference Matter

9.01 Introduction

The purpose of this chapter is to provide guidelines for the organization and presentation of bibliographies, footnotes, endnotes and indexes.

Bibliographies and reference notes are the means used by authors in all fields to document the source of any quotations or ideas that are not their own. Footnotes and endnotes may also contain a reference to information found elsewhere in the book or article, or provide supplementary or background data that cannot easily be incorporated into the body of the text. Indexes, on the other hand, never contain information; they guide the reader to information in the text.

9.02 Bibliographies, General

Bibliographies are indispensable research tools that list books and articles related to a general or highly specialized field of study in order to help the reader locate and consult a particular book or article. Reference works should always be listed in the same manner within a single bibliography, for reasons of precision, uniformity and clarity. Bibliographic standards have been established for the translation of a reference work listing from one language to another. The bibliographic style presented here is based on International Standard ISO 690 entitled Documentation—Bibliographic References—Content, Form and Structure and on ISBD (International Standard Bibliographic Description) protocols.

9.03 Types of bibliography

Various types of bibliography are possible, depending on the nature of the book or document in which they are to appear. A bibliography may list all the works consulted by a writer, as well as others the writer believes readers will find useful, or it may be restricted to a listing of works actually cited in the text. An annotated bibliography contains comments made by the author concerning the scope, usefulness or other features of the works listed. A bibliography may appear at the end of a book, report or other document (before the index, if any), at the end of a chapter, or as a separate document.

9.04 Bibliographies, Arrangement

If a book covers a broad subject, or if each chapter in it is devoted to a different topic, it may be more practical to break the source material down into a general bibliography of works covering the subject as a whole and a number of separate listings of works referring to specific chapter topics or fields. The Canada Year Book, for example, contains a listing of general reference works as well as separate listings, at the end of each chapter, on such topics as geography, health, the legal system, art and culture, banking and finance, and transportation. Other arrangements are possible—separate listings for books and articles, for example. In most cases, however, a straightforward, alphabetical, letter-by-letter arrangement (see 9.42 Alphabetical arrangement) will suffice. Choose an arrangement that presents the source works in as clear, orderly and logical a manner as possible.

9.05 Romanization

Romanization is the transcription of characters of another alphabet into Roman characters so as to make a text, and specifically a bibliographic entry, readable. The Library of Congress and the International Organization for Standardization have published conversion tables to facilitate transcription.

9.06 Translation

If the translated (English) title appears on the title page of a publication in another language, it follows the primary title in the bibliographic entry and is italicized, with a period separating the two elements:

  • Von Keitz, S., and W. von Keitz. Bibliotheks- und Informationswissenschaft. Library and Information Science. Weinheim, Germany: VCH Verlagsgesellschaft, 1989.

If you yourself must provide a translation, insert the English version of the title (no italics) in brackets after the primary title, capitalize the initial word, and place a period after the closing bracket:

  • Chang-Rodríguez, Eugenio. Latinoamérica: su civilización y su cultura [Latin America: its culture and civilization]. Boston: Heinle and Heinle, 1991.

For a publication in which French and English titles are given, both languages should be included:

  • Canada. Department of Canadian Heritage. Convention on the Rights of the Child. First Report of Canada / Convention relative aux droits de l’enfant. Premier rapport du Canada. Ottawa, May 1994.

Note the space on each side of the oblique.

The publisher’s name should not be translated, but for the benefit of the unilingual reader the place of publication may be:

  • L’Europa mediterranea: Spagna, Portogallo, Francia. Arnoldo Mondadori, ed. Milano (Milan): Panorama, 1990.

When no translation is given on the title page, check whether translations of the work are already on record at the National Library of Canada, the Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information (CISTI) or elsewhere before translating the primary title. Accuracy of translation is essential.

9.07 Principal source of information

The principal source of information when listing a work should be the work itself. In the case of a monograph (book, pamphlet), the title page and overleaf are the sources of information, whereas for a work published in a series (periodical), the main source is the title page or, in the absence of a title page, the cover, the running title or the copyright page. In the case of a computerized document, information for the bibliographic entry is found on the sticker on the disk, diskette or packaging. For films and videotapes, the main sources of information are the credits and the packaging. If any bibliographic details are missing and cannot be found in the principal source of information, scan the document itself or check library records.

9.08 Compiling a bibliographic entry

(a) Books

A bibliographic entry for a book should generally comprise the following:

  • Author’s name (one or several authors; corporate author; editor or compiler, if there is no author; translator or illustrator, if either is the focus of the study)
  • Title (includes title and subtitle)
  • Secondary responsibility (includes editor, translator, compiler, preface writer, etc.)
  • Edition (other than the first)
  • Publication data (place of publication, publisher, date)

These components are separated by periods and a space, and the second and subsequent lines of an entry are indented.

(b) Articles

An entry for an article in a periodical should contain the following:

  • Author’s name
  • Title of the article
  • Name of the periodical
  • Volume and issue number (if any)
  • Date
  • Page number(s) (inclusive)

The article title is enclosed in quotation marks and followed by a period inside the closing quotation marks. Note that the date is placed in parentheses and no comma separates it from the volume or issue number. In accordance with International Standard ISO 690: 1987, the abbreviation p. or pp. may be omitted, and a colon then precedes the page number(s). However, if the volume number has not been given, the abbreviation is used and is preceded by a comma:

  • Moore, Jason. "Understanding Old Age." Popular Medicine 7, 3 (August 1991): 210–14.
  • Luna, James. "Allow Me to Introduce Myself: The Performance Art of James Luna." Canadian Theatre Review 68 (Fall 1991), pp. 46–7.

(c) Specialized periodicals

Bibliographic, footnote and endnote entries for articles in specialized periodicals in the natural, applied and social sciences are generally presented as follows:

  • Only the first word in the article title and proper nouns and their derivatives are capitalized.
  • Since most scientific publications use the author-date system in references, the date of publication is placed directly after or below the author’s name.
  • No quotation marks are used for the title of the article.
  • The title of the publication is invariably abbreviated and in most cases not italicized.
  • The volume or issue number is followed by a colon, and p. or pp. is not used.

    Ivanovic, M., and K. Higita. 1991. Advances in cellular and development biology. Can. J. Biochem. 125: 539–41.

Note the use of periods with the abbreviations.

See 9.25 In-text notes for the author-date system and 9.29 Common abbreviations in notes and bibliographies for title abbreviations.

9.09 Author’s name

List a maximum of three names of people or groups of people responsible for the content of the work. Give the author’s name exactly as it appears on the title page of the work. Do not abbreviate a name that has been given in full.

Omit an author’s titles, affiliations or degrees.

See 9.42 Alphabetical arrangement and 9.45 Personal names on how to alphabetize names in a list.

(a) One author

The author’s name may be that of a person or persons or of a corporate body. A person’s surname precedes a given name or initials. The article (A, An or The) at the beginning of a corporate author’s name is usually omitted, as is any term identifying the nature of the enterprise, such as Inc. or Co.:

  • Carpenter, Thomas. Profiles in Canadian Genius. Camden East, Ont.:
  • Camden, 1990.
  • Canada. Public Service Commission of Canada. Selection Standards.
  • Ottawa, 1989.

If there are multiple entries by the same author, begin the second and subsequent entries with a 3-em dash and a period:

  • Atwood, Margaret. Wilderness Tips. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1991.

    ———. The Robber Bride. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1993.

(b) Two or three authors

Open the entry with the first name mentioned in the document. Only the first name listed is inverted; the rest are transcribed as they appear in the document, separated by a comma:

  • Eagleson, Alan, and Scott Young. Powerplay: The Memoirs of Hockey Czar Alan Eagleson. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1991.

(c) More than three authors

When there are four or more authors responsible for a single work, the entry should begin with the name of the first author, inverted, followed by a comma, a space and "et al." (short for et alii), meaning "and others":

  • Klassen, Paul, et al. The Butterflies of Manitoba. Winnipeg: Manitoba Museum, 1989.

(d) Editor

An editor may have primary responsibility for a work or may share it with a writer. In the former case, the editor’s name is placed first in the bibliographic entry, followed by a comma and the abbreviation ed. (eds. for more than one editor). In the latter case, the editor’s name, preceded by "Edited by," follows the title of the work:

  • Tortelli, Anthony B., ed. Sociology Approaching the Twenty-first Century. Los Angeles: Peter and Sons, 1991.
  • Moodie, Susannah. Roughing It in the Bush, Or, Life in Canada. Edited by Carl Ballstadt. Ottawa: Carleton University Press, 1990.

(e) Corporate author

List documents lacking a specified author or editor under the title of the sponsoring body, which may be a country or its government; a department, board, agency or commission; an association, company, institution or firm; or even a sporting event or exhibition.

In the interest of clarity, cite the full name of the corporate author, not its abbreviated form. If the organization is better known by its acronym or by some other shortened version of its name, choose the more familiar, reduced form, as in "Unesco" instead of "United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization."

The name of a superior governing authority is usually listed first in a bibliographic entry, unless the corporate author’s name includes a term indicating the organization’s dependence. Therefore, list

  • Unesco. Adult Education Section.

not

  • United Nations. Unesco.

In the case of government publications, begin the entry with the name of the country, province, state or municipality issuing the document:

  • Canada. Department of the Environment. Trademarks on Base-Metal Software. Ottawa: Canada Communication Group, 1991.

When listing a court of law, indicate the political entity under which it exercises its power, as in "Canada. Supreme Court" or "Manitoba. Court of Queen’s Bench."

(f) Pseudonyms and anonymous works

Authors better known by a pseudonym than by their real name should be listed under that pseudonym. Where required, give the author’s real name or place "pseud." in brackets after the pseudonym. In the case of anonymous works for which the author’s identity has been established, place the author’s real name in square brackets. Otherwise, list the work by its title followed by the rest of the bibliographic information. Do not use "anonymous" or "anon." unless the author really is unknown:

  • Carroll, Lewis [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson]. Through the Looking Glass. New York: Random House, 1946.
  • Eliot, George. Middlemarch. Norton Critical Editions. New York: W.W. Norton, 1977.
  • [Horsley, Samuel]. On the Prosodies of the Greek and Latin Languages. 1796.
  • "Summer is Icumen In." In Immortal Poems of the English Language. Edited by Oscar Williams. New York: Pocket Books, 1954.

9.10 Order of precedence

Note the following conventions for the order of bibliographic entries:

  • A single-author entry precedes a multiple-author entry beginning with the same name.
  • An author’s own volume precedes one that he or she has edited or compiled.
  • Corporate authors are alphabetized according to the first key word in the name (not A, An or The).
  • A list of works by the same author is presented in chronological order.

The rules given in 9.42 Alphabetical arrangement for alphabetizing index entries also apply to bibliographies.

9.11 Title

Transcribe the title as it appears on the title page; the original capitalization and punctuation need not be retained. Italicize titles of published works such as books or periodicals. If the work being listed is published within another document, such as an article in a periodical, set the title off in quotation marks:

  • Horsman, Jenny. "Something in My Mind Besides the Everyday": Women and Literacy in Nova Scotia. Toronto: Women’s Press, 1990.
  • Clement, Lesley D. "Artistry in Mavis Gallant’s ‘Green Water, Green Sky’: The Composition of Structure, Pattern, and Gyre." Canadian
    Literature
    129 (Summer 1991), pp. 57–73.

If the title is in two or more languages, transcribe the titles as they appear, separating them with an oblique (/) and a space on each side of the oblique:

  • The Future of Canadian Programming and the Role of Private Television: Keeping Canada on the Information Highway / L’avenir des émissions canadiennes et le rôle de la télévision privée : Maintien du Canada sur l’autoroute électronique. Report to the Minister of Canadian Heritage. March 1995.

See 9.06 Translation for information on translated titles.

Any subtitle should follow the title after a colon and a space. If the title and subtitle are italicized, so is the colon:

  • Schwartz, Ellen. Born A Woman: Seven Canadian Singer-Songwriters. Vancouver: Polestar Press, 1988.

9.12 Secondary responsibility

Mention the name of the writer of the preface, foreword or introduction only if there is specific reference to that part of the book and if the writer is not the same as the author of the rest of the work. List the author of the cited preface, foreword or introduction, then the title of the book, followed by the name of the author of the book itself:

  • Atwood, Margaret. Afterword to A Jest of God, by Margaret Laurence.
    Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1993.

Place the name of a person or group who is not primarily responsible for the work itself, such as a compiler, editor, translator or illustrator, after the title, using the appropriate term or abbreviation ("Comp. by," "Edited by," Trans. by," "Illus. by"):

  • Wood, A. J. Errata: A Book of Historical Errors. Illus. by Hemesh Alles. Stewart House, 1992.
  • Laferrière, Dany. Eroshima. Trans. by David Homel. Toronto: Coach House, 1991.

If no author is mentioned, the name of the editor, translator or compiler takes the place of the author:

  • Bryden, Philip, Steven Davis and John Russell, eds. Protecting Rights and Freedoms: Essays on the Charter’s Place in Canada’s Political, Legal, and Intellectual Life. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994.

9.13 Edition

When citing an edition other than the first one, indicate the edition used in Arabic numerals and abbreviate the word "edition" as "ed.":

  • Werther, William B., et al. Canadian Human Resource Management. 3rd ed. Whitby, Ont.: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1990.

The words "reprint," "printing" and "impression" do not indicate a new edition.

9.14 Place, publisher and date

(a) Place of publication

If a document has more than one place of publication, choose the Canadian city, if any, or the first city mentioned. When it is necessary to differentiate a place of publication from others with the same name or to identify one that is not well known, add a geographic identifier (name of country, province or state), in an abbreviated form:

  • Willmot, Elizabeth. When Anytime Was Train Time. Erin, Ont.: Boston Mills, 1992.

If the place of publication is not given, insert "N.p." for "no place of publication," in square brackets.

(b) Publisher

Listed after the place of publication, the publisher’s name is preceded by a colon and a space, and followed by a comma. The publisher’s name should be transcribed as it appears in the document, but articles and abbreviations such as Co., Ltd. and Inc. are usually dropped:

  • Harris, R. Cole, and John Warkentin. Canada Before Confederation: A Study in Historical Geography. Ottawa: Carleton University Press, 1991.

The publisher’s name may be given in full or in an acceptable abbreviated form. For abbreviations of publishers’ names, consult Canadian Books in Print and Books in Print.

If the name of the publisher is not provided, insert "n.p." for "no publisher," in square brackets.

(c) Date of publication

The date of publication is preceded by a comma and is always written in Arabic numerals. If the date of publication is not provided, add the copyright date instead.

If neither the date of publication nor the copyright date can be ascertained, check library records for the missing information. You can either give an estimated date of publication followed by a question mark, enclosing both in square brackets, or add "n.d." for "no date of publication." Give inclusive dates for a multivolume work:

  • Banicek, Edward. A History of Indonesia. 3 vols. Philadelphia: Ross and Kittredge, 1988–93.

If a multivolume work has yet to be completed and all the volumes in print are listed, indicate the date of the first volume, followed by an en dash:

  • Skelton, Margaret. A Critical History of Modern Dance. 2 vols. to date. Chicago: Terpsichore Press, 1987–.

9.15 Series

This item is reserved for works that are a part of a special collection. Include any number that has been assigned to the document cited. The name of the collection, followed by a comma, the abbreviation "No." and the number of the document are placed after the title:

  • Martin, Robert, and G. Stuart Adam. A Sourcebook of Canadian Media Law. Carleton Library Series, No. 51. Ottawa: Carleton University Press, 1989.

9.16 Examples of specific entries

(a) Conference proceedings

Conference proceedings are identified by the title of the conference:

  • Cultural Economics 88: A Canadian Perspective. Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Cultural Economics, Ottawa, September 27–30, 1988. 3 vols. Edited by Harry Hillman-Chartrand, et al. Akron, Ohio: Association for Cultural Economics, 1989.

(b) Lectures

Give the speaker’s name, the title of the lecture in quotation marks, followed by a descriptive identifier (seminar, address, lecture, etc.), the sponsoring organization, the location and the date:

  • Massé, Marcel. "Partners in the Management of Canada: The Changing Roles of Government and the Public Service." John L. Manion Lecture, Canadian Centre for Management Development. Ottawa, February 18, 1993.

(c) Dissertations

List a published dissertation in the same way as other books, but identify the work as a dissertation and mention the academic institution:

  • Collard, Janice. The Theme of Rebirth in Canadian Drama. Master’s thesis. McGill University, 1989. Montréal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1992.

Leave the title of an unpublished dissertation in roman type and enclose it in quotation marks:

  • Monks, Ashley Andrew. "Gypsy Wanderings: Dialectal Differentiations in the Romany Language." Master’s thesis. University of British Columbia, 1995.

(d) Electronic documents

Documents stored on a CD-ROM, computer disk or database are generally listed by title. The citation must specify, in square brackets, the type of document being listed and include information needed to identify and retrieve the work:

  • "Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome." In MESH vocabulary file [database on-line]. Bethesda, Md.: National Library of Medicine, 1990 [cited October 3, 1990]. Identifier No. D000163. [49 lines.]

For further information regarding the listing of electronic sources, refer to International Standard ISO 690-2 Information and Documentation—Bibliographic References—Electronic Documents or Parts Thereof.

(e) Film and videotape

Depending on the focus of your study, a film or videotape can be listed under its title or the name of the director, producer, screenwriter or principal actor. Whatever the first component of the bibliographic entry may be, specify the medium of the work in square brackets at the end of the entry:

  • Borsos, Phillip, dir. Dr. Bethune. With Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren. 1990. [Film.]

(f) Musical recordings

Give the name of the composer, title of the recording (or works on the recording), artist’s name (where applicable), manufacturer, catalogue number (if known), year of issue, and any other pertinent information:

  • Prokofiev, Sergei. Romeo and Juliet (excerpts). Montreal Symphony Orchestra. Cond. Charles Dutoit. London: Decca Records, 1991.
  • Somers, Harry. The Fool. With Roxolana Roslak, Patricia Rideout, David Astor and Maurice Brown. Cond. Victor Feldbrill, RCA, LSC 3094 (CBC, 272), n.d.

Bibliographic entries for published musical scores are similar to those for books.

(g) Interviews

Enter the name of the interviewee, the type of interview (personal, telephone, etc.), and the date:

  • Egoyan, Atom. Personal interview. November 27, 1994.

(h) Radio and television programs

List the entry under the title of the program and include the network or local station, the city, the broadcast date, together with other pertinent information. Note that titles of television and radio shows are italicized and that segments and episodes are set off in quotation marks:

  • You Be the Doctor. "The Lifestyle Crisis." With Valerie Pringle. Prod. by Jack McGraw. CTV Toronto Film Production. August 1, 1995.

(i) Theatrical performances

In addition to the title of the play, the playwright, director and principal actor, give the name of the theatre, the city and the date of performance, along with any other pertinent information:

  • Caird, John, and Trevor Nunn. Les Misérables. By Victor Hugo. With William Solo. Royal Shakespeare Company. National Arts Centre, Ottawa, 1994.

(j) Legislative documents

Acts, regulations and legal notices are published in federal and provincial government gazettes, which should be listed as follows:

  • The Canada Gazette. Part II. Vol. 125, No. 1 (2 January 1991)–Vol. 125, No. 17 (14 August 1991).

Note that the title of the gazette is italicized and that the jurisdiction and legislative body need not be mentioned.

Adopt the following order for order papers and notices: name of government; name of department, agency or institution; title of document; legislature and session numbers; volume and issue numbers (if any); issue date; and publication data:

  • Canada. Parliament. House of Commons. Order Paper and Notices. 33rd Parliament, 1st Session. No. 134 (28 June 1985). Ottawa: Queen’s Printer, 1985.

9.17 Secondary source citations

When referring to a work that has been cited within another, list as the first component of your entry the work that is the focus of your text: either the work that has been quoted or the work in which it is quoted. The first-mentioned work, or primary reference, should be listed in the standard fashion. For the second document, or secondary source, the bibliographic data should be separated by commas. If the secondary source is a book, enclose the publication data in parentheses:

  • Burns, Robert. Epistle to a Young Friend. 1786. Quoted in Robertson Davies, The Deptford Trilogy: The Manticore (Toronto: Macmillan, 1987).

or

  • Davies, Robertson. The Deptford Trilogy: The Manticore. Toronto: Macmillan, 1987. Quoting Robert Burns, Epistle to a Young Friend, 1786.

9.18 Reference Notes, General

Reference notes may be found within a text (in-text notes), but are usually presented at the foot of a page (footnotes) or at the end of a chapter or document (endnotes). Reference notes pertain to works that have been directly cited or paraphrased, whereas a bibliography lists the works consulted. Footnotes and endnotes are generally referenced by means of a raised (superscript) numeral, letter or symbol immediately following the item in question. The superscript follows all punctuation marks except the dash:

  • As Kenneth Dyer points out in a recent article,1 the ambassador’s criticism of the countries involved2—India, Pakistan and Bangladesh—upset a number of delegates.

The principal differences between notes and bibliographies are as follows:

  • Reference note entries are numbered.
  • The author’s name is not inverted.
  • Components of the entries are separated by commas rather than periods, and there is a space but no punctuation between the title and the opening parenthesis before the publication information.
  • The publication data is placed within parentheses.
  • Page numbers indicate the exact position of the citation.

9.19 Books

If it is not included in a bibliography, cite the source work in detail the first time it is noted. A footnote or endnote description of a book should contain the same information as a standard bibliographic reference (see 9.08 Compiling a bibliographic entry(a)).

The place of publication, publisher’s name and date of publication should be enclosed in parentheses, but page references should remain outside the parentheses. The author’s name is followed by a comma, the name of the place of publication is followed by a colon and one space, and the publisher’s name is followed by a comma. A comma follows the parentheses:

  • 1. Michael Ondaatje, The Cinnamon Peeler (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1992), p. 13.

If the source material is listed in a bibliography at the end of the text, reference notes may not require elaborate treatment. The first reference to a book may comprise only the author’s initials and surname, the title of the work, and the relevant page number(s).

9.20 Subsequent references

Subsequent references to a work may be shorter still. Only the last name of the author, key word(s) in the title, and the page number(s) are required. Thus the entry for Ondaatje is reduced to

  • 5. Ondaatje, Cinnamon Peeler, p. 13.

If only one work—book or article—by the author is quoted, his or her name and the page number(s) will suffice. For the use of the abbreviations ibid., loc. cit. and op. cit., see 9.27 Ibid., loc. cit., op. cit..

9.21 Articles

Information in a note reference to a periodical or journal article should include the name of the author(s), the title of the article, the name of the periodical or journal, the volume and issue numbers, the date and the page number(s):

  • 1. George E. Wilson, "New Brunswick’s Entrance into Confederation," Canadian Historical Review 10, 1 (March 1928): 23_24.
  • 2. Laura Lush, "Fishing," Antigonish Review 68 (fall 1990), pp. 111–2.

Note that the abbreviation p. or pp. may be omitted (see 9.08 Compiling a bibliographic entry(b)).

9.22 Newspapers and magazines

References to newspapers and magazines require the name of the writer, article title, name of the publication, date of issue and page number. Give the name of a newspaper as it appears on the masthead:

  • 1. Charles Gordon, "Hats Off to Observers Who Can Interpret the Important Events of Our Era," The Ottawa Citizen, June 21, 1995, p. 4.

If the city is not identified as part of the newspaper’s name, give it in square brackets after the name.

9.23 Footnotes

If only a few notes are required in an article or chapter and the note material is succinct, use the footnote format. A footnote may do more than simply refer the reader to another work or page for further information; it may give information on how facts presented in the text were ascertained or confirmed. Such a note is useful for conveying supplementary data, as in the following example:

In the United States, by contrast, approximately 49% of psychologists name either teaching or research as their principal activity, compared with only 31% for service functions.1 Table 15 shows the numbers and proportions of English- and French-speaking2 Canadians and of American and other foreign respondents in each of the principal work functions. It is estimated that 13–14% of Canadian psychologists are French-speaking.3

_______________

  • Back to the note1 1986 National Register of Scientific and Technical Personnel.
  • Back to the note2 French-speaking Canadians were identified by their request for or return of the French version of the questionnaire. Further identification and response rates were confirmed through follow-up telephone contacts with non-residents (see Appendix 3).
  • Back to the note3 But see discussion by Dr. Bélanger on p. 127.

Number your footnotes page by page or chapter by chapter and thereby avoid the possibility of triple-digit references.

Occasionally two distinct series of footnotes are required: an author’s notes on the one hand and a translator’s or editor’s notes on the other. Use asterisks and a different typeface for the translator’s or editor’s notes, which should end with the appropriate abbreviation (Trans. or Ed.):

  • *The "commission" referred to is the Canada Labour Relations Board (Ed.).

Use special symbols or letters to indicate notes within the body of mathematical, statistical and other scientific documents, and particularly with tables and graphs, as illustrated below, since superscript numerals could be confused with mathematical indices:

  1990 1995 2000ª
Haiti 35 19 2
Canadab 1080 920 3005

ª projected
b including Quebec

9.24 Endnotes

Where notes are numerous and lengthy and include extensive comments by the author, use the endnote format to facilitate word-processing and cross-referencing and enhance the appearance of the text.

Number your references consecutively throughout the article or chapter, as in the case of footnotes, and present the notes in a reference list at the end of the article or chapter:

  • Notes to Chapter 2

    1. M. Fleming and W. H. Levie, eds., Instructional Message Design: Principles From the Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, 2nd ed. (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Educational Technology Publications), 1993, pp. 34–57.
    2. Fleming and Levie, p. 66.
    3. B. Joyce, B. Showers, and C. Rolheiser-Bennett, "Staff Development and Student Learning: A Synthesis of Research on Models of Teaching," Educational Leadership 45, 2 (1987): 11–23.

9.25 In-text notes

Also known as the author-date system, in-text notes are found in running text or at the end of a block quotation, and consist of the author’s last name (where that is the name under which the work has been listed) and the date of publication of the work, both enclosed in parentheses. This brief form of citation is meant to identify the work being cited, while full bibliographic information is reserved for the list of works cited:

  • (Fleming and Levie 1993)
  • (Joyce, Showers and Rolheiser-Bennett 1987)

Note that there is no punctuation separating the two elements of the note, unless there is a reference to a specific page, volume or other division of the work. Insert a colon, but no space, between volume and page references, and start with the volume number. Unless there is a risk of confusion, omit the abbreviations p., pp. and vol.:

  • (Suzuki 1990, 3:45)
  • (Wiebe 1993, 27)

9.26 Author-number system

This alternative involves a numerical arrangement of bibliographic references. Within the body of the text the writer merely cites the name of the author of each source work, along with a key number in parentheses on the same line:

  • As Craven (2) has demonstrated, there is no evidence that extensive feedback played a more significant role in improving students’ writing.

In an accompanying bibliographic reference list, arranged numerically, the first reference to a work contains full details—except in a book with a main bibliography at the end, in which case a shortened note is required—and subsequent notes are as brief as possible, in accordance with the guidelines given in 9.20 Subsequent references. The bibliographic entry for the preceding example is

  • 2. Craven, Mary Louise. "Chinese-Speaking University-Level ESL Students’ Changes to Essay Drafts." Paper presented at TESL Conference, Toronto, November 1988.

The advantage of the author-number system is that footnotes are required only for comments by the writer, examples and allusions. The inherent difficulty is that the writer must keep a running list of source works and appropriate page numbers at the first draft stage in order to ensure that each work is assigned the same number in every pertinent note reference.

9.27 Ibid., loc. cit., op. cit.

It is now more common to give the shortened form of previously listed reference notes, but you may want to avoid unnecessary repetition by using the Latin abbreviation ibid., short for ibidem, meaning "in the same place," for consecutive references to the same work:

  1. Weiss, Leon, ed., Cell and Tissue Biology (Baltimore, Md.: Urban and Schwarzenberg, 1988), p. 1144.
  2. Ibid.
  3. Ibid., 1062.

Note

Reference 2 is to the same page number. Reference 3 is to another page number of the same work.

Avoid using loc. cit. (loco citato, "in the place cited") and op. cit. (opere citato, "in the work cited") when you are making a reference to a previously cited work and when references to other documents have intervened. Tracing that earlier reference can be frustrating for readers; use of the short form of the reference note gives them the required information immediately.

9.28 Legal references

Legal documents require note and bibliography formats that differ from those of general works and government publications. Lawyers and legal scholars adopt many abbreviations in their references. Use these abbreviations if the intended reader has specialized knowledge of law, but use only familiar abbreviations when writing for a general audience.

Monographs. Books on legal topics may be presented in the same format as works in the humanities. However, because of the many footnotes in legal writing, specialists tend to omit the author’s initial, place of publication and publisher’s name in order to save space:

  • 1. Linden, Canadian Negligence Law (1972), at 259.

Note the use of "at" in legal references. The abbreviation p. or pp. may be dropped in the interest of brevity.

Articles. Provide information in the following order: surname of author, title of article in quotation marks, year of publication in parentheses, periodical volume number, abbreviated periodical title, the number of the first page of the article, and the actual reference page number:

2. Castel, "Some Legal Aspects of Human Organ Transplantation in Canada," (1968) 46 Can. Bar Rev. 345, at 361.

Court decisions. For volumes of the Supreme Court Reports from 1923 on, give the case name in italics, followed by a comma, the year of publication in square brackets, the issue number (if desired), the abbreviation for the Reports, the number of the first page of the judgment, and the reference page number:

  • 3. Higgins v. Comox Logging and Ry. Co., [1927] 1 S.C.R. 359, at 360.

For volumes prior to 1923, cite the case name in italics and the year the judgment was rendered in parentheses, followed by a comma, the volume number, the abbreviation for the Reports, and the number of the first page of the citation:

  • 4. Burland v. Moffat (1885), 11 S.C.R. 76.

For the Federal Court Reports use the same format as for post-1922 S.C.R. volumes:

  • 5. Canadian Pacific Air Lines, Limited v. The Queen, [1979] 1 F.C. 39, at 40.

For the Dominion Law Reports give the case name in italics and, if desired, the date of judgment in parentheses before the comma, the volume number, the abbreviation for the Reports, the series number in parentheses, the number of the first page of the judgment, the reference page number and, if desired, the abbreviation for the court in parentheses:

  • 6. Beim v. Goyer (1966), 57 D.L.R. (2d) 253, at 256 (S.C.C.).

The reference is complete without the date; the reader could find Volume 57 of the second series without knowing the date of judgment, which is therefore an optional addition for information purposes alone. However, there is an alternative D.L.R. format which incorporates a date as part of the reference:

  • 7. Nova Mink v. TCA, [1951] 2 D.L.R. 241, at 254 (N.S.C.A.).

Here the date, which is the date of publication and therefore not necessarily the date of judgment, is in effect part of the volume number, while the number following is that of the issue.

Note that the v. in such references need not be italicized.

Statutes. When citing acts of Parliament, give the short version of the title of the act, the abbreviation for the Statutes and the year, the chapter number (each statute is a separate chapter of the Statutes of Canada), and the section referred to:

  • 8. National Sports of Canada Act, 1994, c. 16, s. 5.

For further information on legal references, consult The Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation.

9.29 Common abbreviations in notes and bibliographies

Abbreviations can help make your footnotes, endnotes and bibliographic entries more concise. For lists of relevant abbreviations see International Standard ISO 832, Documentation—Bibliographical References—Abbreviations of Typical Words and the latest edition of the MLA Handbook.

Guidelines for the creation of title abbreviations for serial and non-serial publications are provided in International Standard ISO 4-1984, Documentation—Rules for the Abbreviation of Title Words and Titles of Publications. Extensive lists of abbreviations for words commonly found in scientific periodical titles can be found in the World List of Scientific Periodicals, and for the social sciences, in the World List of Social Science Periodicals.

9.30 Indexes, Definition

An index is a systematic guide to significant items or concepts mentioned or discussed in a work or group of works; the items and concepts are represented by a series of entries arranged in a known or searchable order, with a locator, which is an indication of the place(s) in the work(s) where reference to each item or concept may be found.

9.31 Scope and complexity

An index may be general or specific. A general one lists subjects, authors, persons or corporate bodies, geographical names and other items. A specific index is limited to a particular category of entry, such as one of the items in the above list, abbreviations and acronyms, or citations.

A work may contain a general index and one or more specific indexes. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography, for example, has three: an index of identifications (occupational sectors of those listed), a geographical index and a nominal index. Multiple listings are designed to help readers research a particular aspect of the subject concerned.

The complexity of indexing has fostered the development of a number of computerized indexing methods (see bibliography). Human intervention is nonetheless required for hierarchical arrangement, alphabetization, choice of terms, word order, capitalization and cross-referencing.

9.32 Indexes, Arrangement

The order of entries is usually alphabetical, and each entry is followed by a locator. The arrangement may vary, however, depending on the contents of the work being indexed. A chronological arrangement would be suitable for an index of historical events and persons, for example, and a numerical one might be required for lists of chemical elements, patents or highways.

9.33 Length

Agreement must be reached beforehand with the publisher on the length of the index. Normally, an index should not exceed five percent of the number of pages in the work itself. The need for completeness should be tempered by consideration of the extent of the prospective reader’s knowledge of the subject matter.

9.34 Referenced material

Do not index the title page of a work, its table of contents and dedication, epigraphs, abstracts of articles, or synopses at the beginning of chapters. Include references to illustrations, photographs, graphs, tables and figures only if they give pertinent information not provided in the body of the text.

On the other hand, the index should, in addition to the text proper, cover introductions, addenda, appendixes and substantive notes, forewords and prefaces that contain pertinent information, and—in the case of newspapers and periodicals—book reviews and letters to the editor.

9.35 Simple entry

A simple entry is composed of an identifier, which is the heading, and a locator—the page or section number(s) where reference to the item may be found:

  • Domino theory, 911
  • Drainage basins, 4–6
  • Drugs, control of, 180–2
  • Duties, customs and excise, 802, 812, 818, 824

Each item is listed according to the key word, so inversion of phrases is often necessary, with a comma separating the two elements of the inversion. The key word should be the one that the reader is likely to look up in order to find the information required. The full heading is followed by a comma. The page numbers are given without p. or pp., and inclusive numbers should be presented in accordance with the rules enunciated in 5.24 Comparative and inclusive numbers, e.g. 47–48, 10–16, 213–18, 1653–1703. Avoid the use of f., ff. and et seq. in place of numerals.

9.36 Complex entry

A complex entry is composed of a main entry (with a main heading) and one or more subentries (subheadings), each with a locator. The complex entry may be presented in run-in or indent format:

run-in indent
Maritimes, English in,
21, 32, 39; French in,
80; surveys in, 119
Maritimes,
   English in, 21, 32, 39
   French in, 80
   surveys in, 119

The two formats reflect the same inverted word order, a comma follows the heading in each case, and the second and subsequent lines of the entry are indented. In the run-in format, however, the entry is presented in paragraph style, each subentry being followed by a semicolon. In the indent format the presentation is columnar: the main entry and each subentry stand on a separate line, so semicolons are not required. In neither case does a period close the entry.

The advantage of the run-in format is that it saves space and can provide a seminarrative, chronological outline of events in a biographical or historical context, as shown in the following listing for a Canadian ship that was engaged in action in World War II:   

  • Haida, 197, 250; action of April 26/44, 251; action of April 29/44, 253, 258, 266; action of June 9/44, 286, 300; U-boat kill, 302; Channel and Biscay actions, 340, 348, 359, 401, 406

The advantage of the indent format is that it is more legible and makes the relationships between items more readily apparent to the reader. Use it when such relationships are to be highlighted, as in the case of scientific indexes:

  • Muscles, skeletal
    • congenital defects of, 342
    • contracture of, 326
    • diseases of, 226
    • dystrophy of, 326, 896
      • enzootic, 893, 896, 1015
      • foals, 424
    • hypertrophy, inherited, 1052

The example, taken from the field of veterinary medicine, illustrates the use of sub-subentries. In such circumstances a columnar presentation is essential.

9.37 Combined entries

In order to keep your index as short as possible, combine entries for closely related concepts. For example,

  • Financial management, 35, 45
  • Financial systems, 56, 67

can be amalgamated to form one entry:

  • Financial management and systems, 35, 45, 56, 67

If the number of subentries is particularly long, the index may be too detailed, as in the following example:

  • Engineering courses
    • chemical, 46
    • civil, 47
    • electrical, 48
    • marine, 49

A combined entry suffices:

  • Engineering courses, 46–49

9.38 Double posting

Because readers do not necessarily look up the same term or expression as the one selected by the indexer, you can provide multiple access points to facilitate retrieval of a given piece of information:

  • Editing, principles of, 62–73
    Revision, principles of, 62–73
  • Hodgson v. Matthews, 266
    Matthews v. Hodgson, 266

9.39 Choice of terms

The wording of the entry should be as specific as possible for the prospective reader’s purposes. Popular or specialized terms may be used, depending on the reader and the nature of the work. When preparing an index, you can glean established nomenclature from the indexes of previous publications on the same subject or from thesauri, or you can create your own headings on the basis of the work at hand. In doing so, check the author’s terms for consistency and accuracy and, if necessary, use a standard term instead (e.g. when indexing medical publications).

9.40 Syntax of heading

Definite and indefinite articles, adverbs, and finite and infinitive verbs should not be included in headings or subheadings except in the case of headings comprising titles of publications and works of art. The only verb form permitted is the gerund. Retain conjunctions and prepositions essential to establishing a semantic link within the headings. Some latitude is possible here, however. Note that there is no prepositional link between the heading "Muscles, skeletal" (see 9.36 Complex entry) and the subheading "hypertrophy, inherited"; the reader will understand the semantic relationship between the two items, and the columnar presentation shows that one is an aspect of the other.

In determining the word order of a heading, the first step is to select a key word or phrase under which to list the entry. For example, an indexable subject in a social science manual might be the sources and collection of statistical data. Statistical data would be the key term and the entry would appear thus:

  • Statistical data, sources and collection of, 57

Sources and collection cannot be used as a key phrase because it is not specific enough. Accordingly, the normal word order has to be inverted and a comma is required after the key phrase. Inversion serves to reduce scattering of related headings and page numbers throughout an index because headings with the same key word will be located close together, e.g. Heating, electric and Heating, oil-fired.

An action word (gerund) in a heading is normally brought to the fore if the entry is listed under a noun:

  • Mean, determining standard error of, 35

In the interest of brevity, however, the gerund in the above example could be dropped, since the reader will realize what is entailed in the reference.

Another way of achieving conciseness is to drop prepositions. In the following example, the key phrase is followed by a logical sequence of modifiers:

  • Copper ores, mining, grinding, screening, pulverizing and floating

With the key phrase in boldface type, the preposition of can be dropped without causing the reader any problems of comprehension.

An adjective is inverted unless it is part of a name and the noun itself is non-specific:

  • Oral cavity
  • Pulmonary disease

9.41 Entry versus subentry

The indexer is constantly faced with the problem of whether to list references to a topic in a series of simple entries or as one main entry with a number of subentries. For example, references to the various types of statistical mean are scattered throughout a statistical work. They could be indexed in one large, complex entry:

  • Mean
    • arithmetic, 28
      • for grouped data, 29, 135
      • properties of, 29, 136–37
    • geometric, 31
      • for chained ratios, 32, 138
      • properties of, 31, 139–41
    • harmonic, 32, 142

Since the document is a specialized one, however, it makes more sense to create main entries for each type of mean, with a cross-reference (see 9.52 Cross-references) from Mean, thereby obviating the need for sub-subentries and the repetition of page number references.

In general, avoid single subentries and sub-subentries. In the interest of conciseness, the complex entry

  • Spasticity
    • neonatal, inherited, 1046
    • periodic, inherited, 1046

can easily be reduced to

  • Spasticity, inherited neonatal and periodic, 1046

9.42 Alphabetical arrangement

Headings may be alphabetized letter by letter or word by word:

letter by letter word by word
Laurence, Margaret Laurence, Margaret
Leacock, Stephen Le Jeune, Père
Leechman, Douglas Le Pan, Douglas
Le Jeune, Père Leacock, Stephen
Le Pan, Douglas Leechman, Douglas

In the word-by-word listing, the position of the two-word names is determined by the first word; the second part of the surname comes into play in determining which of the two names is listed first. In the letter-by-letter arrangement, the number of words in the heading is irrelevant.

Use the letter-by-letter format for an index of acronyms, letters and symbols with technical meanings, as in a scientific work.

List organizations by their acronyms or abbreviations if they are usually referred to in that way. The short form should be alphabetized letter by letter and followed immediately by the full title in parentheses or a cross-reference to that title.

A word-by-word arrangement is often used in a proper noun listing of geographical names:

  • North Umpqua
  • North Valley Stream
  • North Vancouver
  • North Vernon
  • North Versailles
  • Northumberland Strait
  • Northumbria
  • Northvale
  • Northville

In a letter-by-letter listing, the entries with the word North would not have been grouped together.

The word-by-word listing provides for a clear grouping of related headings, e.g. book, book jacket, book label and book list, which would otherwise be separated by a heading such as bookkeeping. Its disadvantage is that a related term may have to be separated from the grouping because it is one word, hyphenated or unhyphenated. For example, words such as booklet and bookmark might well be separated from the above group, even though they belong to the same subject field. This shows the advantage of a letter-by-letter listing: a compound occupies the same position, whether it is unhyphenated, hyphenated or written as two words.

Note that, whichever arrangement is adopted, prepositions at the beginning of a subentry or sub-subentry must be disregarded for alphabetization purposes.

9.43 Listing of subentries

Subentries are generally listed in alphabetical order of the first noun in the subheading, but a chronological, mathematical or other listing may be appropriate, as in the case of popes, kings, element numbers in chemistry, geological eras and highway numbers. See 9.36 Complex entry for an example of chronological listing in a historical work.

9.44 Capitalization

The first letter of a main heading is capitalized, except in certain French and foreign names, the names of chemical compounds with an italicized prefix, and standard symbols with a lower-case first letter:

  • van Willebrand disease
  • p-Aminobenzoic acid
  • pH

In scientific texts it is important to distinguish between common and proper nouns. The first letter of a generic or family name in biology is capitalized, but that of a specific epithet or common name is not:

  • spirochetes
  • Sporotrichinaceae
  • Sporotrichum schenkii

9.45 Personal names

When an article or preposition is part of an English name, it is alphabetized without inversion, e.g. de la Roche, Mazo; De Quincey, Thomas. Names beginning with Mac, Mc or M’ are alphabetized as if spelled Mac. Ignore the apostrophe in treating an Irish name such as O’Flynn; alphabetize it as if it were one unpunctuated word.

French surnames beginning with an article or a contraction of an article and a preposition are listed without inversion, e.g. Le Rouge, Gustave; Du Pont, Georges. Similarly, names beginning with d’ are generally not inverted, e.g. d’Arcy, Jules. There is no standard method for alphabetizing names beginning with de or de la. Adopt the personal preference of the individual concerned or the traditional presentation of his or her name, e.g. Balzac, Honoré de; La Fontaine, Jean de. Christian saints should be alphabetized by their given names, with an identifier added if necessary:

  • John, Saint
  • John Chrysostom, Saint
  • John of the Cross, Saint

The choice between Saint- and St- and between Sainte- and Ste- in personal names depends on the traditionally preferred presentation. When an abbreviated form is used, it should be alphabetized as if spelled out.

For detailed information on the presentation of English, French and foreign-language names, see the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules.

9.46 Government departments and agencies

Invert the titles of government departments, e.g. Justice, Department of. It may be necessary to include a general cross-reference from Department informing the reader that each department is listed under the name of the field for which it is responsible.

Sometimes it is worth adding a geographical identifier in parentheses for the sake of clarity:

  • Sociedad Nacional de Minería (Cuba)
  • Sociedad Nacional de Minería (Peru)

9.47 Geographical names

Alphabetize geographical names according to the main noun (Ontario, Lake; Robson, Mt.), except where the generic noun is part of the title (Lake of the Woods). Alphabetize non-English names under the article if there is one (La Prairie; La Tuque; Los Angeles), but list English names with articles under the main noun (Eastern Townships, The; Pas, The).

List items under the names most commonly or officially used or most recently adopted, with a cross-reference from the alternative or former title:

  • Dahomey. See Bénin
  • Moldavian S.S.R. See Moldova
  • Rhodesia. See Zambia; Zimbabwe

For information about the official versions of Canadian place names, see Chapter 15 Geographical Names.

The English version of a French or foreign place name should be used. When there are two non-English names for the same place, use the one more commonly found in written English, e.g. Bruges, not Brugge.

In the English-speaking world the same name is used for many geographical entities. Use modifiers in parentheses when necessary:

  • Hull (Quebec)
  • Paris (Ontario)

The same word may be listed several times:

  • Québec (city)
  • Quebec (government)
  • Quebec (province)

When listing the numbers of the pages where reference to a place is made, remember that it may also be referred to by its generic noun alone—the lake, the mountain, etc.—and that such references should be included in the index entry.

9.48 Newspapers and periodicals

List an English-language newspaper under the name of the place of publication if it is part of the title and, if not, under the first word of the title after the definite article, e.g. Gazette, The. List French-language and foreign-language newspapers under the first noun, e.g. Journal de Montréal, Le. The article may be dropped unless the omission will cause difficulty or will appear curious, e.g. Droit, Le.

List periodicals under their full title, without the article, e.g. Canadian Journal of Chemistry. In periodical citation indexes the abbreviated forms of titles are used (see 9.08 Compiling a bibliographic entry and 9.29 Common abbreviations in notes and bibliographies).

9.49 Scientific names

Arabic numerals, Greek letters, capital letters with a special meaning, and modifiers prefixed to the names of chemical compounds should be disregarded for alphabetization purposes unless they constitute the only difference between entries:

  • N-Acryloneuraminic acid
  • O-Acryloneuraminic acid

When a Greek letter stands by itself as a separate entry, Romanize it, e.g. Pi, Gamma.

Abbreviations for scientific terms should generally not be used at the beginning of a main entry except (i) in a cross-reference, (ii) as part of the name of an enzyme or compound, or (iii) when more than one species is listed for a biological genus:

  • i) CO2. See Carbon Dioxide
    ii) mRNA, 16, 56
    iii) Ambystonia maculatum, 15
        A. mexicanum, 17

Generic names in biology should in any case be abbreviated after the main entry and alphabetized by epithet as a space-saving device:

  • Triticum sp.
    • T. aestivium
    • T. durum

9.50 Homonyms

Adopt the following order of entry for homonyms—person or organization (forenames precede surnames); place (cities and towns precede administrative areas, which precede physical features); subject; title of publication:

  • Hull, Robert (hockey player)
  • Hull (Quebec)
  • Hull, population of
  • Hull, A Short History of

Within a list of personal names an alphabetical (John, Pope; John, Saint), hierarchical (John, Saint; John, Pope) or chronological/numerical (John XXII; John XXIII) arrangement is possible. The usual hierarchical order is saints, popes, emperors and empresses, kings and queens, surnames:

  • John, Pope
  • John, Augustus

Include modifiers in parentheses after each common noun in order to distinguish it from its homonyms:

  • Character (literature)
  • Character (psychology)

9.51 Abbreviations and other reference tools

References to material not contained within the body of the text, such as bibliographies, glossaries, illustrations and tables, require a locator in letters as well as in numbers. The numeral can be printed in boldface type, while the element in letters is presented in italics, usually as an abbreviation:

  • 367 bibliogr.
    • bibliography
  • 54 (fig. 21)
    • figure
  • 345 glos.
    • glossary
  • 68 (fn. 2)
    • footnote
  • 54 ill.
    • illustration
  • 36 (hn.)
    • headnote
  • facing 60
    • plate

When more than one significant reference to an item is made on the same page of a text, and each piece of information is useful, the words bis (twice) and ter (three times) may follow the page number in the index:

  • War of 1812–14, 78 (bis), 87 (ter)

In indexing works with many words on a page, make the reader’s search for information easier by assigning a letter or number to each part of the page. For example, in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the letters a, b, c and d refer to the top, upper middle, lower middle and bottom of the left column of a page, and e, f, g and h to the same parts of the right column (23a, 23b, 23c, etc.).

Explain all abbreviations and special reference codes in an introductory note to the index.

9.52 Cross-references

Cross-references are required to guide readers from a given heading to a related heading that will lead them to the information required or to additional information on the same subject. The cross-reference is printed in italics, except when the subject heading referred to is itself normally presented in italics:

  • Archaisms. See Relic forms; Historical forms
  • Ryan, Claude, 234–65. See also Devoir, Le

There are five ways of indicating cross-references: See, See also, See under, See also under and q.v.

(a) See immediately follows the heading. No page numbers are given in the entry. A semicolon is used to separate headings if more than one entry is referred to:

  • Reference matter. See Bibliographies; Endnotes; Footnotes; Indexes

It is sometimes impractical to list a whole series of cross-references, however. If so, make a non-specific reference. For example,

  • Education, Department of. See under government of appropriate province

is a more succinct entry than one including the names of all the provinces.

The See cross-reference is appropriate in the following situations:

  • When there is an acceptable synonym for the heading chosen:

    War of 1812–1814. See Invasion of Canada

  • When an entry is listed under a different letter from the one the reader might expect:

    La Mare, Walter de. See de la Mare, Walter

  • When a person is known by a title or pseudonym as well as by a first name and surname:

    Beaverbrook, Lord. See Aitken, Max

  • To refer the reader to an antonym of the entry:

    Peace movement. See War, nuclear

  • To refer the reader to a modern or popular term for the same concept:

    Ceylon. See Sri Lanka
    Latter-day Saints. See Mormons

  • To refer the reader from a specific to a more general heading required by the nature of the subject field treated in the work. For example, in a chemistry text, an entry under Algebra might be too specific, and a cross-reference

    Algebra. See Mathematics

    would be used. Conversely, in a work dealing primarily with mathematics, there would be a separate entry for algebra, but chemistry headings would be more general, e.g.:

    Organic compounds. See Chemical compounds

(b) See also is used when at least one page number is not common to the two entries concerned. It guides the reader to additional information on a subject and is placed after the page numbers:

  • Coinages, Canadian, 68, 153. See also Slang

(c) See under is used to direct the reader to a subentry:

  • Mandatory supervision. See under National Parole Board

(d) See also under is used in the same way as See also, except that it refers the reader to a subentry:

  • New Brunswick, 8, 14, 162, 170. See also under Maritimes

(e) The abbreviation q.v. applies to a particular word or expression within a heading or subheading, indicating that it can be turned to as a separate heading in the same index:

  • Acadians
       settlement of Port-Royal (now Annapolis Royal, q.v.), 116–27, 244–47

9.53 Blind references

Careless editing of indexes can result in circular cross-referencing of the type illustrated below:

  • Atlantic provinces. See New Brunswick; Newfoundland and Labrador; Nova Scotia; Prince Edward Island
  • Maritimes. See Atlantic provinces
  • Nova Scotia. See Maritimes

Trace all cross-references to ensure that each of them leads the reader to real information.

9.54 Continued headings

Each page of a printed index contains at least two columns of entries. For the reader’s benefit, it is important to ensure that a main heading is repeated—Industry, Department of (cont.)—at the top of the right-hand column or of the left-hand column of the next page if further subentries are to be listed.

9.55 "Dangling" entries

The first line of an entry should never be left at the bottom of a column. Any such entries found at the editing stage should be placed at the top of the next column at the head of the rest of the entry.