Abstract
Research Citation and referencing of sources make the academic writings authentic, reliable and approachable. A citation is a way of giving credit and acknowledgment to scholars for their creative and intellectual thoughts, ideas and works that are utilized to support the research studies. It is also used to locate particular sources and combat plagiarism. A citation or referencing style is a set of rules, a particular way or a standard approach for documenting and formatting the sources that are quoted, consulted, mentioned, paraphrased, summarized and cited or referred to in the scholarly writings. Proper use of pre-defined citation style helps to make the reference list and bibliography consistent and easy. Different ways or styles have been developed over time to address the specific needs of presenting citations and referencing in different disciplines or professions. Similarly, some instructors or supervisors also recommend a specific style. This paper presents an overview and critical review of the most commonly used citation styles i.e. MLA, APA, Chicago and Harvard along with the Muslim Scholars Style. The paper aimed the orientation of Research Scholars in the field of Islamic and Oriental Studies.