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''MLA Handbook'' (9th ed., 2021), formerly ''MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers'' (1977–2009), establishes a system for documenting sources in scholarly writing. It is published by the Modern Language Association, which is based in the United States. According to the organization, their MLA style "has been widely adopted for classroom instruction and used worldwide by scholars, journal publishers, and academic and commercial presses". ''MLA Handbook'' began as an abridged student version of ''
MLA Style Manual ''MLA Handbook'' (9th ed., 2021), formerly ''MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers'' (1977–2009), establishes a system for documenting sources in scholarly writing. It is published by the Modern Language Association, which is based in the ...
''. Both are academic style guides that have been widely used in the United States, Canada, and other countries, providing guidelines for writing and documentation of research in the humanities, such as
English studies English studies (usually called simply English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries; it is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which i ...
(including the English language, writing, and literature written in English); the study of other modern languages and literatures, including
comparative literature Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study ...
; literary criticism;
media studies Media studies is a discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history, and effects of various media; in particular, the mass media. Media Studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly ...
;
cultural studies Cultural studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines the political dynamics of contemporary culture (including popular culture) and its historical foundations. Cultural studies researchers generally investigate how cultural practices r ...
; and related disciplines. Released in April 2016, the eighth edition of ''MLA Handbook'' (like its previous editions) is addressed primarily to secondary-school and undergraduate college and university teachers and students. MLA announced in April 2016 that ''MLA Handbook'' would henceforth be "the authoritative source for MLA style", and that the 2008 third edition of ''MLA Style Manual'' would be the final edition of the larger work. The announcement also stated that the organization "is in the process of developing additional publications to address the professional needs of scholars."


History

''MLA Handbook'' grew out of the initial ''MLA Style Sheet'' of 1951 (revised in 1970), a 28-page "more or less official" standard. The first five editions, published between 1977 and 1999 were titled ''MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations''. The 2003 sixth edition changed the title to ''MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers''. The seventh edition's main changes from the sixth edition were "no longer recogniz nga default medium and instead call ngfor listing the medium of publication hether Print or Web or CDin every entry in the list of works cited", recommending against listing URLs, and preferring italics over underline. Additionally, the seventh edition included a website with the full text of the book. Later online additions allowed for citation of
e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...
s and tweets. The eighth edition's main changes from the seventh edition are "shift ngour focus from a prescriptive list of formats to an overarching purpose of source documentation". Released in spring 2016, it changes the structure of the works cited list, most directly by adding abbreviations for volumes and issues (vol. and no.), pages (p. or pp.), not abbreviating words like "editor" or "translator", using URLs in most instances (though preferring DOI, as in APA), and not favoring the medium of publication. The ninth edition, in 2021, provides more examples, advises more inclusive language, and advises that URLs are optional, with DOI and permalinks being preferred. The ninth edition also provides rules for annotated bibliographies.


Editions

The table below identifies the year of publication of each edition of ''MLA Handbook''.


MLA Style Manual

''MLA Style Manual'', previously titled ''MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing'' in its second (1998) and third edition (2008), was an academic style guide by the United States-based
Modern Language Association of America The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association (MLA), is widely considered the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "s ...
(MLA) first published in 1985. MLA announced in April 2016 that the publication would be discontinued: the third edition would be the last and was to be "taken out of print". The announcement also said that what began as an abridged version for students, ''MLA Handbook'', was to be after that point "the authoritative source for MLA style", and that the organization was "in the process of developing additional publications to address the professional needs of scholars".


Usage

MLA documentation style is used in scholarship throughout the humanities, especially in
English studies English studies (usually called simply English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries; it is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which i ...
, modern languages and literatures,
comparative literature Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study ...
, literary criticism,
media studies Media studies is a discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history, and effects of various media; in particular, the mass media. Media Studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly ...
,
cultural studies Cultural studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines the political dynamics of contemporary culture (including popular culture) and its historical foundations. Cultural studies researchers generally investigate how cultural practices r ...
, and related disciplines. ''MLA Style Manual'' was one of two books on MLA documentation style published by the MLA. While ''MLA Handbook'' is aimed at secondary and post-secondary students and their teachers, the intended audience of ''MLA Style Manual'' primarily consisted of graduate students, academic scholars, professors, professional writers, and editors.


History

Both ''MLA Handbook'' and ''MLA Style Manual'' were preceded by a slim booklet titled ''MLA Style Sheet'', first published in 1951 and revised in 1970. The ''Style Sheet'' was allowed to go out of print after the commercial success of the ''Handbook'', creating the need for the ''Manual'' as a companion to the ''Handbook''. ''MLA Style Manual'' was scheduled to go out of print in 2016. In April 2017, the organization said it would be "developing additional publications to address the professional needs of scholars".


See also

*
Comparison of reference management software The following tables compare notable reference management software. The comparison includes older applications that may no longer be supported, as well as actively-maintained software. General In the "notes" section, there is a difference betwe ...
* Parenthetical referencing *
APA style APA style (also known as APA format) is a writing style and format for academic documents such as scholarly journal articles and books. It is commonly used for citing sources within the field of behavioral and social sciences, including socio ...


References


Bibliography

* . * . * . * .


External links

*
The MLA Style Center
' – dedicated website
MLA Style Guide, Eighth Edition, IRSC Libraries

MLA Formatting and Style Guide, Purdue OWL

MLA Style Manual
Second Edition, 1998
Guide to academic style guides
from College of St. Rose. {{DEFAULTSORT:MLA Handbook 2009 non-fiction books Academic style guides Style guides for American English