German Citation Style Explained Simply: Tips and Examples

Have you already explored the basics of proper citing and would now like to become more confident in using the German citation style? For this purpose, we have compiled detailed information about this citation style and various useful examples for you.

What is the German Citation Style?

When using the German citation style, source references are made via appropriate footnotes at the end of the page. In the main text, after each quote, a superscript number is inserted, which then specifies the relevant source data in the corresponding footnote.

In the following, we show you various examples of how source citations in footnotes and in the bibliography must look according to the German citation style. For all examples, it is essential to note that depending on the university, there may be variations in detail from the source citations shown here. Therefore, before you begin your work, you should inform yourself about the specific requirements of your university regarding citation according to the German citation style.

 

References in Footnotes

When citing sources in the footnotes of a page, a distinction is made between the so-called full citation and the short citation. The full citation is used when a source is first mentioned, which includes the complete information about the source—that is, everything that also appears in the bibliography. For all subsequent mentions, the short citation is used, which is limited to author name, year, and page number.

Authors

• 1 Author: Full citation: Cf. Meier, Peter: Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher, 2010, p. 64. Short citation: Cf. Meier, 2010, p. 64.
• 2 Authors: Full citation: Cf. Meier, Peter / Schulze, Paul: Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher, 2010, p. 64. Short citation: Cf. Meier/Schulze, 2010, p. 64.
• 3 or more Authors: Full citation: Cf. Meier, Peter / Schulze, Paul / Schmidt, Christian: Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher, 2010, p. 64. Short citation: Note: Multiple authors are abbreviated with "et al." in the short citation. Cf. Meier et al., 2010, p. 64.

As already mentioned, formal differences in the author attribution can occur depending on the university. This can affect, for example, the separator used for multiple authors:

• (cf. Meier/Schulze/Schmidt, 2010, p. 64)
• (cf. Meier, Schulze & Schmidt, 2010, p. 64)
• (cf. Meier, Schulze and Schmidt, 2010, p. 64)

Please also note that the examples here refer to indirect quotes and therefore the references are preceded by "cf." Accordingly, for direct quotes, the "cf." is omitted (see also our article "Correct Citing").

 

Source Types

• Example Books:
  The author Peter Meier demonstrates in his work that … (cf. Meier 2010: 64).
   
• Internet Sources:
  The author Peter Meier demonstrates that … (cf. Meier 2020).

 

Multiple Sources

• Various works demonstrate that … (cf. Meier et al. 2010: 64; Schmidt/Schneider 1995: 104; Schulze et al. 1978: 28).

 

Bibliography

In the bibliography, all sources used in a scientific work are listed in alphabetical order. Unlike the source reference, which was already inserted in the main text, the bibliography contains detailed information about a source (e.g., edition, publisher, place of publication, etc.).

Authors

• 1 Author: Meier, Peter (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher.
• 2 Authors: Meier, Peter / Schulze, Paul (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher.
• 3 or more Authors: Meier, Peter / Schulze, Paul / Schmidt, Christian (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher.

In the bibliography too, depending on the university, there can be different ways to separate multiple authors:

• Meier, Peter and Schulze, Paul (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide ...
• Meier, Peter & Schulze, Paul (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide ...

 

Source Types

• Example Books:
  Note: Book titles in italics
  Meier, Peter (2010): Correct Citing - The Guide, 2nd ed., Hannover, Germany: Example Publisher.
   
• Internet Sources:
  Meier, Peter (Status: 01.01.2020): Correct Citing - The Online Guide, [online] https://www.empirio.ai/empiriowissen/richtig-zitieren/ [05.03.2020]. .

 

Following the Basics of Scientific Work Now Comes Empirical Research

Now you have learned the basics of science and the fundamental structure of a scientific work. In the following chapters, we will show you step by step what a research paper looks like if you want to underpin it with empirical research.

 

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Next Chapter:
Chapter 7 - Empirical or Theoretical Thesis?

• The difference between an empirical and a theoretical thesis
• When should you write a theoretical, and when rather an empirical thesis?