Historical works often reach modern readers through translation, revised editions, and scholarly introductions. To cite one accurately, record the original author, translator, edition, publication details, and the specific style required by your instructor or publisher.
Identify the Information You Need
Before formatting the citation, inspect the title page and copyright page rather than relying only on a library search result. A historical book may list several dates and people, and each can affect the citation.
Collect these details:
- Author: The person who originally wrote the work.
- Translator: The person who translated the text into the language you are reading.
- Title and subtitle: Copy the wording and capitalization required by your citation style.
- Original publication date: The year the historical work first appeared, if it is known and relevant.
- Edition used: A revised, critical, annotated, or second edition may have different pagination and editorial content.
- Publisher and publication year: Use the details for the translated edition in your hands.
- Volume or series information: Record it when the work is part of a multivolume set or scholarly series.
- Page, chapter, section, or location: Note the exact place supporting your quotation or paraphrase.
- DOI or stable URL: Include this when the translated work is an online publication and your style requires it.
Do not treat the translator as the main author unless the source is primarily the translator’s work, such as a translation study, critical edition, or book in which the translator is presented as the author. For a translated historical text, the original author normally begins the reference or works-cited entry, while the translator is identified later.
Also distinguish between the year the original work was written, the year it was first published, and the year of the translation you consulted. For example, a speech composed in 1789 might have been published in 1795 and translated in 2020. Those dates describe different events and should not be substituted for one another.
Choose the Correct Citation Style
The required style determines where the translator appears, whether the original date is included, and how the title is punctuated. The most common options for historical and humanities assignments are APA, MLA, and Chicago.
| Style | Main system | Translator placement | Historical-date treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| APA 7 | Author-date | After the title in parentheses | Original year may appear with translation year |
| MLA 9 | Author-page | Usually in an “Translated by” phrase | Original date is optional unless relevant |
| Chicago notes-bibliography | Footnotes and bibliography | After the title or in a note phrase | Original and translation dates can both be shown |
If your assignment does not name a style, ask your instructor before submitting. History departments often prefer Chicago notes and bibliography, literature courses commonly use MLA, and social-science courses generally use APA. A citation can be factually complete but still be considered incorrect if it does not follow the assigned system.
APA 7: Reference List and In-Text Citations
For a translated book in APA 7, begin with the original author’s surname and initials. Put the publication year of the translation in parentheses, followed by the italicized title. Identify the translator in parentheses after the title, then provide the publisher. A general pattern is:
Author, A. A. (Year of translation). Title of work (A. A. Translator, Trans.). Publisher. (Original work published Year)
For example:
Herodotus. (2014). The histories (T. Holland, Trans.). Penguin Books. (Original work published ca. 440 BCE)
The wording for an ancient work can vary because the original date may be approximate. If the date is uncertain or not useful to your assignment, follow your instructor’s preference and use the date information supplied by the edition.
For a modern historical work translated into English, the format is more straightforward:
Bloch, M. (2019). The historian’s craft (P. Putnam, Trans.). Vintage. (Original work published 1949)
APA in-text citations normally use the original author and the translation year:
- Parenthetical paraphrase:
(Bloch, 2019) - Quotation with a page:
(Bloch, 2019, p. 42) - Multiple pages:
(Bloch, 2019, pp. 42–44)
When the original publication date is especially important, APA allows a paired date in the text, such as (Bloch, 1949/2019). Use this when discussing the historical reception, chronology, or difference between the original and translated editions. Do not add the paired date automatically if your instructor wants only the edition consulted.
If the book has an edition number, include it after the title and before the translator information, for example: *Title of work* (3rd ed.; J. Smith, Trans.). If the translator is also the editor, include both roles when the title page identifies both: (J. Smith, Trans. & Ed.).
MLA 9: Works Cited and Parenthetical References
MLA emphasizes the edition you used and the location of the passage. A translated book generally follows this pattern:
Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Work. Translated by Translator’s Name, Publisher, Year.
Example:
Ibn Khaldun. The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History. Translated by Franz Rosenthal, Princeton University Press, 1967.
For an author with a familiar alternate name, use the name shown by the edition or the form recommended by your instructor. Historical authors may appear under Latinized, anglicized, or transliterated names. Consistency matters more than silently switching between forms.
An MLA parenthetical citation usually gives the author and page number:
(Ibn Khaldun 118)
If the author’s name is already in the sentence, use only the page number:
Ibn Khaldun describes historical change as a process shaped by social cohesion (118).
For a multivolume work, include the volume before the page, separated by a colon: (Author 2: 118). If the edition uses chapters, sections, or paragraph numbers instead of stable pages, cite the most reliable locator available, such as (Author, ch. 4) or (Author, sec. 12).
MLA does not require the original publication date in every translated-book entry. Add it when the historical date helps readers understand the source, when your instructor requests it, or when you are comparing the original with later editions. You might write an explanatory note or include the date in a relevant description rather than forcing it into a standard entry.
Chicago Style: Notes and Bibliography
Chicago notes-bibliography style is especially useful for historical research because footnotes can provide context as well as source information. A bibliography entry commonly looks like this:
Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Work. Translated by Translator’s Name. Place of publication: Publisher, Year.
Modern Chicago editions often omit the publication place when the publisher’s identity is sufficient, so follow the version of the Chicago Manual required by your institution.
Example bibliography entry:
Procopius. The Secret History. Translated by Anthony Kaldellis. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 2010.
The first footnote is usually fuller:
- Procopius, The Secret History, trans. Anthony Kaldellis (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 2010), 76.
Later notes can be shortened:
- Procopius, Secret History, 81.
If the original date is central to your argument, include it in a note or explanatory sentence. For ancient and medieval sources, a date such as “ca. 550” or “written in the fourth century” may be more accurate than a precise modern publication year. The translation’s publication year still identifies the edition you consulted.
Chicago also supports author-date style. In that system, the reference resembles APA but uses Chicago punctuation and conventions. Do not combine a Chicago footnote with an APA-style parenthetical citation unless your instructor specifically asks for both.
Cite Quotations and Paraphrases Correctly
A complete bibliography entry identifies the book, but an in-text citation or footnote identifies the exact passage. Add a page number for every direct quotation when the edition provides stable pagination.
For a quotation, introduce the wording clearly and preserve the translation’s spelling and punctuation unless you explain an alteration. If you omit material, use the omission convention required by your style. Do not silently modernize a historical passage or replace the translator’s wording with your own.
For a paraphrase, cite the page or section even when a page number is not strictly required. A citation should allow a reader to locate the idea quickly. If one paragraph draws on several pages, cite the relevant page range rather than placing one vague citation at the end.
When comparing two translations, identify both translators and editions. The wording may differ substantially, so a citation to only the original author is not enough. You can write, for example, “The passage is rendered as ‘…’ in Smith’s translation (42), while Jones translates the same sentence more literally (57).” List both editions in the references or bibliography.
Handle Ancient, Anonymous, and Archival Works
Historical sources do not always fit the modern author-title-publisher pattern.
- Ancient works: Use the conventional author name and the edition’s translator. Cite book, chapter, paragraph, or section numbers when those are more stable than pages.
- Anonymous works: Begin with the title if no author is known. Do not invent an author based only on tradition or an editor’s attribution.
- Works with disputed authorship: Follow the edition’s cataloging practice and explain the attribution in a note if it affects your argument.
- Letters, diaries, and memoirs: Identify the writer, recipient when relevant, document date, collection title, translator, and page or document number.
- Primary sources in edited collections: Cite the historical author of the individual text, then identify the translator and the editor or collection in the format required by your style.
- Online scans: Cite the translated edition itself and add the stable database or archive information. Do not cite a search-results page.
A translation may be a primary source for the translator’s version but a secondary mediation of the original historical language. This distinction matters in research. If your argument depends on a particular word, consult the original language or a scholarly edition when possible, and state that you are analyzing a translation.
Common Problems and How to Fix Them
Problem: The translator is listed as the author. Check the title page. If the book says “translated by,” keep the original author first and identify the translator in the appropriate position.
Problem: You used the wrong year. Use the publication year of the edition you read. Add the original year separately when the style or argument calls for it.
Problem: The book has no page numbers. Cite a chapter, section, paragraph, part, or another stable locator. For an e-book with changing layouts, use the publisher’s location number if available.
Problem: The title page and catalog record disagree. Prefer the physical or digital edition you actually used. Record the title-page details, then consult the publisher or library record only to resolve ambiguity.
Problem: The work is part of a series. Include the series and volume information if it helps readers identify the exact edition, especially when volumes have different translators or publishers.
Problem: You are citing a quotation found in another book. Cite the source you actually read. If you did not consult the translated historical work itself, use a secondary-source citation and identify the original source as indirect, following your style guide.
Problem: You cannot tell whether an editor translated the text. Look for role labels such as “edited and translated by.” Treat each role separately and include both when required.
A Final Accuracy Check
Before submitting, compare the citation against the book itself and check these points:
- The original author’s name is consistent throughout the paper.
- The translator is identified with the correct role.
- The reference uses the translation year, not an unrelated reprint or original-publication year.
- The title, edition, publisher, and volume details match the version consulted.
- Every quotation has a page or stable location.
- Ancient or undated works use an honest approximate date rather than false precision.
- The in-text citation, footnote, and bibliography entry follow one style consistently.
- Any comparison between translations names the specific translators and editions.
The most reliable citation is not necessarily the longest one. It is the one that tells readers exactly which translated version you used and where they can find the passage, while preserving the historical distinction between the original work and its modern transmission.