Citation

A citation is a formal reference that credits the original source of an idea, fact, or quotation, allowing readers to locate and verify the information.

Citation style: Turabian

Being informal, this text most commonly uses the author-date style of Turabian, a style guide created by Kate L. Turabian in her work, "A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations". It's sometimes referred to as Chicago-style. Here are a couple examples of books cited in the style, for others see the Chicago Manual of Style.

In-text citations

(Kitamura 2017, 25)
(Sassler and Miller 2017, 114)

Reference list entries (in alphabetical order)

Kitamura, Katie. 2017. A Separation. New York: Riverhead Books.
Sassler, Sharon, and Amanda Jayne Miller. 2017. Cohabitation Nation: Gender, Class, and the Remaking of Relationships. Oakland: University of California Press.

Citation signals

Signal	Alternates	Meaning
(No signal)		It is acceptable to cite an authority without using an introductory signal when the cited authority (1) directly states the proposition, (2) identifies the source of a quotation, or (3) identifies an authority referred to in the text.
For example	e.g.	An abbreviation of the Latin exempli gratia, means "for example". It tells the reader that the citation supports the proposition
See		The cited authority supports, but does not directly state, the proposition given.
See also		The cited authority constitutes additional material which supports the proposition less directly than that indicated by "see"
Compare	cf.	From the Latin confer ("compare"), this signals that a cited proposition differs from the main proposition but is sufficiently analogous to lend support.
Contra	contra	This signals that the cited authority directly contradicts a given point. Contra is used where no signal would be used for support.
But see		The cited authority contradicts the stated proposition, directly or implicitly. "But see" is used in opposition where "see" is used for support.