What is referencing?

The MHRA style is usually used in humanities subjects like arts, history or languages. It is defined by the Modern Humanities Research Association.  The details below explain how to cite and reference information using the MHRA footnotes and bibliography system*.  Your tutor may prefer a specific method, if you are in doubt which method to use you should ask in your School.

Using the MHRA style ­

The documents below include a checklist of the details you need to include for the common types of material cited. The layout and formatting should be exactly as it is shown, though if you do vary it, you should remain consistent throughout your bibliography:

A basic guide to MHRA
Produced by Jane Saunders (University Library) and The School of History.

­ MHRA Style Guide
Produced by the Modern Humanities Research Association.

­Footnotes are commonly used to reference sources with the MHRA style. A footnote is a piece of information that is included at the very bottom of a page, separated from the main text. There is usually a number in the main page text which refers a reader to the footnote at the appropriate point in the work.You should use a superscript number in your text to cite a source. This number will then correspond to a footnote at the bottom of the page which includes the reference for that item.

In addition to including the superscript numbers and footnotes in your text you must also provide a bibliography (arranged alphabetically by author surname) at the end of your work that includes the references for all of your sources.

If you are new to using this style you may wish to complete the MHRA style online tutorial.

* An alternative version of referencing with the MHRA style is to use an author-date method of citation in the same way as the Harvard style. Please refer to the MHRA Style Guide if you require details of how to use this style.