- Borrowing
Your instructor should specify which citation style to use. Be sure to use the correct citation style.
Citation Styles:
Writing an annotated bibliography? Check the link for help and be sure to evaluate your sources.
Only Chicago style citations have details on working with Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers and including them in your Bibliography. The formal APA and MLA citation style guides do not have a listed format for working with Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers. Work is being done to unpack citation and how it reinforces colonial voices and ways of knowing. For more information on the politics of citation please watch the Decolonizing Citation video by Bronwen McKie.
Lorisia MacLeod from Norquest College has developed the following citation styles in the spirit of wahkôhtowin and reconciliation, and we thank them for sharing their template for MLA and APA styles. Lorisia MacLeod was also consulted to write the Chicago Manual of Style 18th edition citation recommendations which were published in 2025.
At Kwantlen Polytechnic University, we have added a few localized elements as recommended by our Elder in Residence Lekeyten. Our additions to the Norquest College guide are noted in red text. Please note all color coding is for your assistance in identifying citation components. Please do not actually use colored text in your work. In addition, please consult the citation style for formatting guidelines, as components such as hanging indentation are not reflected in the following examples.
If you would like to approach an Elder or Knowledge Keeper for teachings, remember to follow Protocol or if you are unsure what their Protocol is, please ask them ahead of time. Please review the Authentic Engagement of First Nations and Métis Traditional Knowledge Keepers guide for guidance on initial Protocols when approaching Elders.
Lekeyten - KPU's Elder in Residence - may be contacted through KPU's Gathering Place. Please review KPU's Protocol Guidelines before contacting Elder in Residence Lekeyten.
Unlike other personal communications, Elders and Knowledge Keepers should be cited in-text and in the References list.
The in-text citation format should follow the same guidelines as noted in the paraphrase and direct quote tabs:
The nature of the place was... (Cardinal, 2004).
The citation format for the References list follows the following format:
Last name, First names initials. (Elder), Nation/Community. Topic/subject of communication if applicable. personal communication. Year, Month Date. Territory Acknowledgement of where information was shared/collected.
For example:
Lekeyten (Elder), Kwantlen First Nation. Community justice. personal communication. 2019, April 4. Shared on the traditional unceded territory of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt and Kwikwetlem Peoples.
Unlike most other personal communications, Elders and Knowledge Keepers should be cited in-text and in the Work Cited list.
The in-text citation format should be formatted as:
Delores Cardinal described the nature of the... OR The nature of the place was... (Cardinal).
The citation format for the Work Cited list follows the following format: Author. Title. Date. Optional add-on.
Last name, First names, Elder, Nation/Community. Topic/subject of communication if applicable. Personal communication, Date Month Year. Territorial Acknowledgement of where the information was shared/collected.
For example:
Lekeyten, Elder, Kwantlen First Nation. Community Justice. Personal communication, 4 April 2019. Shared on the traditional unceded territory of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt and Kwikwetlem Peoples.
Unlike other personal communications, Elders and Knowledge Keepers should be cited in-text and in the Bibliography list.
First Names Last Name (Elder), Nation, Topic/subject of communication if applicable, Personal communication, Territorial acknowledgement of where the information was shared, Month Date, Year.
For example:
Lekeyten (Elder), Kwantlen First Nation, Community Justice, Personal communication, Shared on the traditional unceded territory of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt, and Kwikwetlem Peoples, April 9, 2019.
Last Name, First Names (Elder), Nation. Topic/subject of communication if applicable. Personal communication. Territorial acknowledgement of where the information was shared. Month Date, Year.
For example:
Lekeyten (Elder), Kwantlen First Nation. Community Justice. Personal communication. Shared on the traditional unceded territory of the Kwantlen, Musqueam, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen, Qayqayt, and Kwikwetlem Peoples. April 9, 2019.
APA includes the following:
"Capitalize most terms related to Indigenous Peoples. These include names of specific groups (e.g., Cherokee, Cree, Ojibwe) and words related to Indigenous culture (e.g., Creation, the Creator, Elder, Oral Tradition, Traditional Knowledge, Vision Quest). The capitalization is intentional and demonstrates respect for Indigenous perspectives (for more information see International Journal of Indigenous Health, n.d.; Younging, 2018)." (APA, 2019, p. 261).
Chicago includes citation details for "Indigenous Sources" in sections 14.136 - 14.137. They also recommend consulting "the latest edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association as well as Gregory Younging's Elements of Indigenous Style" (Chicago Manual of Style, 2025, p. 919)