EdCitation publishes this guide to citing a translated book; its tools take each reference from the publisher's record rather than composing it. In every style the core is the same: cite the translation you read, under its own title, and credit the translator. Where the styles part company is the original publication date. APA puts it at the end of the entry and in every citation; MLA and Chicago allow it; Harvard guides disagree; IEEE and Vancouver have no place for it.
We read each rule at the style's publisher in September 2026, and Harvard at a named university guide; APA Style and NLM's Citing Medicine answered with bot checks, so we read archived copies. From an ISBN, EdCitation's free Cite a source looks the edition up and sets the entry; we ran it on translations of Beauvoir, Freud and Piketty and quote what came back.
What does a reference for a translated book need?
Three facts beyond an ordinary book reference: the translator, the year of the translation you read, and the year of the original. Author, title, edition and publisher follow the usual rules in our guide to citing a book or ebook.
Cite the translation, not the original
Adams (2021), writing for APA Style, says to write the reference in the language of the translation you read, so an English translation of a French book takes its English title. Robert Gordon University (2026), in its Cite Them Right templates, says the same for Harvard and adds that the date is the translation's, not the original's. No bracketed original title is needed. Brackets are for a work you read in another language, covered in citing a non-English source.
Where to find the translator and the original date
The title page names the translator; the copyright page, or the publisher's own page, usually gives the original title and year. For The Second Sex, Bauer (2011), reviewing the 2010 translation, dates Le deuxième sexe to 1949; for Capital in the Twenty-First Century, Éditions du Seuil lists the French original on 5 September 2013.
How do you cite a translated book in APA 7?
Put the translator in parentheses after the title with "Trans.", give the translation's year as the date, and end with "(Original work published 1949)", with no full stop after it. That is the pattern of APA's own examples, such as Coelho's The alchemist, translated by A. R. Clarke (Adams, 2021):
de Beauvoir, S. (2011). The second sex (C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier, Trans.). Vintage. (Original work published 1949)
Initials come before the surname, two translators are joined with "&", and the title takes sentence case. APA keeps a particle such as "de" in front of the surname; names in references across cultures covers the other styles.
The double date in the text
Both years go in every citation, the original first, with a slash between them: (de Beauvoir, 1949/2011), or de Beauvoir (1949/2011) in a sentence. APA's book page applies the same pair to any republished work, not only translations, as in its Watson and Rayner example, first published in 1920 and edited in 2013 (American Psychological Association, 2020).
How do you cite a translated book in MLA 9?
The translator goes in the Contributor element after the title, introduced by "Translated by" and the full name. The ninth edition shortened that element's name from "Other contributors" and gives editors and translators as its examples (Modern Language Association, 2021b). The original year is optional: MLA places it straight after the title, as it does for a reprint of Things Fall Apart (Modern Language Association, 2022).
Beauvoir, Simone de. The Second Sex. 1949. Translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier, Vintage, 2011.
In the text, MLA wants the author and a page number, never a year. An older MLA answer shows the original year given in the prose instead, "In Orientalism (1978)", with the entry for a 1979 edition (Modern Language Association, 2017). MLA follows an author's own usage for a particle such as "de".
When the translation is your subject
If your essay is about the translation itself, MLA lets the translator lead and the author follow after "By". The example, from a post written for the eighth edition, puts James Strachey first as editor and translator of a Freud book (Modern Language Association, 2019).
How does Chicago author-date cite a translated book?
With "Translated by" and the translator's full name after the title, as a sentence of its own. The Chicago Manual's author-date sample, under its 18th edition, is Liu Xinwu's The Wedding Party, translated by Jeremy Tiang, cited as (Liu 2021, 279) (University of Chicago Press, n.d.-a).
For an older or classic work, the manual's Q&A says the original date is useful and goes, preferably in square brackets, before the date of the edition you cite (University of Chicago Press, n.d.-b):
Beauvoir, Simone de. [1949] 2011. The Second Sex. Translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier. Vintage.
In the text: (Beauvoir [1949] 2011). The manual's sections on translations, 14.5 to 14.7, sit behind a subscription, so we could not read whether it wants the bracketed date on a recent translation too; the Q&A speaks of older or classic works, which suggests a plain date for a book such as Piketty's. EdCitation builds Chicago's author-date system only.
How do you cite a translation in Harvard?
Harvard has no single publisher, so we follow one named guide: Robert Gordon University's templates for Cite Them Right. Its translation template gives "Translated from [language] by" and the translator's initials and surname after the title, with the translation's year as the date (Robert Gordon University, 2026):
de Beauvoir, S. (2011) The second sex. Translated from French by C. Borde and S. Malovany-Chevallier. Vintage.
In the text: (de Beauvoir, 2011). EdCitation's Harvard follows Cite Them Right's 12th edition, which keeps the place of publication, as its Harvard page says; the 13th drops it.
The other Harvard answer: both years
The University of Westminster (2026), which follows the 13th edition, treats a translation like a reprint: the original year after the author and the translation's year after the publisher, as in its entry for Freud's The unconscious, dated 1915 and ending "Penguin, 2015". Cited that way, Beauvoir becomes (de Beauvoir, 1949). Use the version your module handbook names.
How do IEEE and Vancouver name a translator?
Both put the translator after the title, and neither has a slot for the original date.
IEEE: "trans." after the title
IEEE's reference guide places "trans." and the translator's name after a translated book's title, as in its Dessalles example, Why We Talk, translated by James Grieve (IEEE, 2025). Its template shows initials, and the city, state and country come before the publisher:
[1] S. de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, trans. C. Borde and S. Malovany-Chevallier. New York, NY, USA: Vintage, 2011.
Vancouver: "translators" after the title
Citing Medicine treats a translator as a secondary author, named after the title and followed by a comma and "translator" or "translators" (Patrias, 2007). Its examples keep a particle with the surname, as in "de Groot WP". An optional note may say what the book was translated from; NLM's own example names the Arabic original.
- de Beauvoir S. The second sex. Borde C, Malovany-Chevallier S, translators. New York: Vintage; 2011.
How do the six styles compare?
One book in six styles, citations shown without pages.
| Style | Reference | In-text |
|---|---|---|
| APA 7 | de Beauvoir, S. (2011). The second sex (C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier, Trans.). Vintage. (Original work published 1949) | (de Beauvoir, 1949/2011) |
| MLA 9 | Beauvoir, Simone de. The Second Sex. 1949. Translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier, Vintage, 2011. | (Beauvoir) |
| Chicago 18 author-date | Beauvoir, Simone de. [1949] 2011. The Second Sex. Translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier. Vintage. | (Beauvoir [1949] 2011) |
| Harvard (Cite Them Right, as RGU sets it) | de Beauvoir, S. (2011) The second sex. Translated from French by C. Borde and S. Malovany-Chevallier. Vintage. | (de Beauvoir, 2011) |
| IEEE | S. de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, trans. C. Borde and S. Malovany-Chevallier. New York, NY, USA: Vintage, 2011. | [1] |
| Vancouver | de Beauvoir S. The second sex. Borde C, Malovany-Chevallier S, translators. New York: Vintage; 2011. | (1) or a superscript 1 |
| Any style | Built from the ISBN by Cite a source, free | Add the translator's role and the original year by hand |
What if the translator is also the editor?
Name the person once, with both roles. APA's example is Freud's Civilization and its discontents, with "(J. Strachey, Ed. & Trans.)" after the title and the citation (Freud, 1930/2010) (Adams, 2021). MLA writes "Edited and translated by James Strachey" (Modern Language Association, 2019), and Citing Medicine writes "Hale RB, translator and editor."
When two people do the two jobs, NLM separates them with a semicolon, "Galkin AV, translator; Roodyn DB, editor." IEEE's one example with both roles reads "trans. Ann Wright, Ed." The Chicago and Harvard pages we read show no combined example.
How do you cite a translated chapter in a collection?
Credit that chapter's translator. APA's Heidegger example puts "(J. Sallis, Trans.)" after the chapter title, then the editor and book, Basic writings, with its pages, and ends with the original year: (Heidegger, 1961/2008) (Adams, 2021). MLA puts a translator of one piece after that piece's title rather than in the Contributor element (Modern Language Association, 2021a). Translated articles have a guide of their own.
How do you cite a translated book, step by step?
- Find the ISBN on the copyright page of the translation you read, not the original.
- Give that ISBN to EdCitation's Cite a source and pick the style your course uses.
- Check the author line: a translator must never appear as a co-author.
- Add the translator in your style's words, as in the table above.
- Add the original year where your style takes it: APA, MLA (optional), Chicago, and Westminster's Harvard.
- Shorten the publisher to the name on the title page.
- Paste the finished list into Verify references to check each entry against the records.
What does Cite a source give for a translated book?
For a translated book, EdCitation is the best place to start, because it looks up the edition's own record by ISBN, so the year and publisher belong to the translation you hold; a chatbot composes the reference and cannot know which translation is on your desk. Cite a source sets the reference in any of the six styles from an ISBN, DOI, title, PubMed ID or web address, screens the source for retraction, and asks for no account and no payment. When the book's record names its translator, the entry names them too; the original date is not supplied, so you add it. EdCitation never writes any part of anyone's work: it looks the book up, and every word of the paper stays yours.
The correction form in Cite a source is for web pages, so for a book make the changes below in your paper after you paste the entry.
A classic: The Second Sex, ISBN 9780307277787
APA came back as "de Beauvoir, S. (2011). The second sex. Vintage.", cited as "(de Beauvoir, 2011)". The author, title and publisher are right, but the translators are not named, so add them. Add "(C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier, Trans.)" after the title and "(Original work published 1949)" at the end, and cite (de Beauvoir, 1949/2011). Chicago gave "Beauvoir, Simone de. 2011. The Second Sex. Vintage." with "(de Beauvoir 2011)" in the text: add "Translated by Constance Borde and Sheila Malovany-Chevallier." and [1949], and cite (Beauvoir [1949] 2011) to match the entry. MLA gave "de Beauvoir, Simone. The Second Sex. Vintage, 2011."; add the translators before "Vintage".
Check the year too: Penguin Random House puts this paperback on sale on 3 May 2011, while Bauer (2011) lists the same ISBN under 2010. We could not read the copyright page; use the year it prints.
A recent book: Capital in the Twenty-First Century, ISBN 9780674430006
APA came back as "Piketty, T. (2014). Capital in the twenty-first century. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.", and MLA as "Piketty, Thomas. Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Belknap Press of Harvard UP, 2014." Neither names the translator, because Open Library's record of this edition holds none, though Harvard University Press credits Arthur Goldhammer. Add "(A. Goldhammer, Trans.)" and "(Original work published 2013)" in APA, citing (Piketty, 2013/2014); in MLA, add "Translated by Arthur Goldhammer," before the publisher; in Vancouver, "Goldhammer A, translator." after the title.
An edited translation: The Interpretation of Dreams, ISBN 9780465019779
Here the record names Strachey, and both roles came back: APA gave "Freud, S. (2010). The interpretation of dreams (J. Strachey, Ed. & Trans.). Basic Books.", MLA and Chicago "Edited and translated by James Strachey", and Vancouver "Freud S. The interpretation of dreams. Strachey J, translator and editor. New York: Basic Books; 2010." IEEE gave "S. Freud, The interpretation of dreams, trans. J. Strachey. New York: Basic Books, 2010."; set the title in IEEE's capitals, The Interpretation of Dreams. In every style, add the original year. Hachette's page gives 1899 as the year of first publication; many references give 1900, which we could not confirm at a library catalogue, so use the year your edition's front matter gives.
What Verify references returned
We pasted the three finished APA entries, each with its translator and "(Original work published …)". All three came back verified, each with "Title, author and year match a library catalogue record." Verify references is free, like Cite a source.
Once the paper is written, upload it to References from a file (Pro, $8 a month): every entry is checked, and every citation in the text is paired with its reference.
Quick questions
Where does the translator go in APA 7?
In parentheses straight after the title, initials first, with "Trans.": (C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier, Trans.). A translator who also edited is "Ed. & Trans.".
Do I use the original date or the translation's date?
The translation's year is the main date in every style. APA adds the original at the end and cites both, 1949/2011; Chicago writes [1949] 2011; MLA may give the original after the title.
How do I cite a translator in MLA?
Write "Translated by" and the translator's full name after the title, before the publisher: Translated by Arthur Goldhammer, Belknap Press of Harvard UP, 2014.
Does EdCitation add the translator for me?
When the book's record names one, EdCitation's Cite a source puts the translator in the entry, free. Check that no translator is listed as an author, and add the original year yourself.
How do I cite a translated classic such as Tolstoy?
The same way: cite the modern translation you read, with its translator and its year, and take the original year from the edition's copyright page or introduction.
References
- Adams, A. (2021, July 19). How to cite translated works. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/citing-translated-works
- American Psychological Association. (2020). Book/ebook references. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples/book-references
- Bauer, N. (2011, August 14). [Review of the book The second sex, by S. de Beauvoir, C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier, Trans.]. Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews. https://ndpr.nd.edu/reviews/the-second-sex/
- Éditions du Seuil. (n.d.). Le capital au XXIe siècle [Capital in the twenty-first century]. https://www.seuil.com/ouvrage/le-capital-au-xxie-siecle-thomas-piketty/9782021082289
- Hachette Book Group. (n.d.). The interpretation of dreams: The complete and definitive text. Basic Books. https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/sigmund-freud/the-interpretation-of-dreams/9780465019779/
- Harvard University Press. (n.d.). Capital in the twenty-first century. https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674430006
- IEEE. (2025). IEEE reference guide (Version 3.28.2025). https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/IEEE_Reference_Guide.pdf
- Modern Language Association. (2017, December 5). In-text citations in MLA style involve authors, titles, and page numbers. Can I also include the date of a work? MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/dates-of-works/
- Modern Language Association. (2019, January 7). How do I indicate that the editor of a work is also its translator in my works-cited-list entry? MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/edited-and-translated-by/
- Modern Language Association. (2021a, February 9). How do I cite translated lyrics? MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/citing-translated-lyrics/
- Modern Language Association. (2021b, April 7). Why is the Other Contributors element now called the Contributor element? MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/contributors-element-name/
- Modern Language Association. (2022, August 31). How do I create a works-cited-list entry for a reprinted book? MLA Style Center. https://style.mla.org/reprinted-books/
- Patrias, K. (2007). Citing medicine: The NLM style guide for authors, editors, and publishers (D. L. Wendling, Tech. Ed.; 2nd ed.), chapter 2, Books (updated 2015). National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK7271/
- Penguin Random House. (n.d.). The second sex by Simone de Beauvoir. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/10379/the-second-sex-by-simone-de-beauvoir-newly-translated-by-constance-borde-and-sheila-malovany/
- Robert Gordon University. (2026, April 15). Whole books. Cite Them Right Harvard templates. https://library.rgu.ac.uk/harvard-referencing-templates/whole-books
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-a). Author-date: Sample citations. The Chicago Manual of Style Online. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-b). Citation, documentation of sources (Q&A No. 13). The Chicago Manual of Style Online. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0013.html
- University of Westminster. (2026, September 9). Harvard style. Referencing your sources. https://libguides.westminster.ac.uk/referencing/harvard