In the second edition of the SBL Handbook of Style (SBLHS²; affiliate disclosure), chapter 8 is entirely dedicated to abbreviations.¹ According to the Handbook,

abbreviations for works not listed below should follow Siegfried M. Schwertner, Internationales Abkürzungsverzeichnis für Theologie und Grenzgebiete, 3rd ed. (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2014 [=IATG3; affiliate disclosure]). (§8.4)

IATG³ can be intimidating, but you can get what you need from this important reference tool with four simple steps. These are to

1. Get IATG³.
2. Consult SBLHS².
3. Consult IATG³.
4. Double check SBLHS² for the abbreviation in IATG³.

1. Get IATG³.

Hardback

In hardback, IATG³ can be pretty pricey. It used to sell for nearly $300 on Amazon. But it’s now very likely to be more than that (affiliate disclosure). (Thank you, inflation, but not really.) You can find the hardback a bit cheaper by shopping around.

Ebook

Technically, there’s also an ebook. But it’s only available directly from the publisher. And for it, as of this writing, you’ll pay about $400.

Paperback

De Gruyter has, thankfully, also released IATG³ in paperback. That’s the probably copy you want. As of this writing, you can still find get this version on Amazon for under $60 (affiliate disclosure) and still a bit less than that elsewhere.

Even in paperback, IATG³ isn’t particularly inexpensive. But it’s definitely a lot better than the hardcover. And there’s enough in IATG³ that’s not also in SBLHS² to make IATG³ a useful tool in its own right.

Through a Library

Of course, it might be totally feasible for you to access IATG³ through a library. If your library has a digital copy that you can access whenever you need it, that can be a great option. If it’s a print copy or a digital one that only allows so many users at once, using it might mean jockeying with others for access. In these scenarios, you’ll just need to weigh for yourself the upsides and downsides of this approach versus IATG³’s paperback.

2. Consult SBLHS².

Once you have access to IATG³, however, your first stop is SBLHS², particularly §8.4.

Two Lists

This section has two abbreviation lists.

• The first is sorted alphabetically by sources’ names (§8.4.1). According to this list, “Journal of Biblical Literature” becomes simply “JBL” (p. 194).
• The second lists the same works and periodicals as in the first. But this list is sorted alphabetically by sources’ abbreviations (§8.4.2).

The Lists’ Structure

The second section’s order often closely follows the first section’s. But there are exceptions.

For instance, “Journal of Biblical Literature” ("JBL") appears

• in §8.4.1, between “Journal of Bible and Religion” and “Journal of Christian Theological Research” (p. 194).
• in §8.4.2, between “Jerome Bible Commentary” ("JBC") and “Jewish Biblical Quarterly” ("JBQ") since all three abbreviations begin with “JB” (p. 238).

The Lists’ Uses

Often, you’ll use

• §8.4.1 when composing a citation or a bibliography entry.
• §8.4.2 when you come across a citation and need to decipher an abbreviation in it.

That said, §8.4.2 is also helpful when it comes time to double check IATG³’s abbreviations. And it’s practically a necessity if you’re working with a print version of SBLHS² that you can’t search digitally.

A Caution

In any case, when consulting SBLHS², the key point is not to confuse the two lists. You don’t want to look at §8.4.2 (sorted by abbreviation) and miss something because that list isn’t alphabetized by sources’ titles.

A Conclusion or Not?

With this caution in mind, consult §8.4.1 to find a given source’s abbreviation. If you

• find the source you’re seeking, and it has an abbreviation in §8.4.1, stop. Use this abbreviation. You don’t need to consult IATG³ in this case.
• don’t find the source you’re seeking, move to the next step of consulting IATG³.

3. Consult IATG³.

Like SBLHS², IATG³ has two main abbreviation lists.

The Lists’ Structure

Each is sorted alphabetically.

• The first goes by the sources’ abbreviations (pp. 3–191).
• The second goes by the sources’ titles (pp. 195–726).

So, in IATG³, you have the same two types of information as in SBLHS² §8.4. The order is just reversed so that you have the abbreviation-sorted list first, then the title-sorted list.

The Lists’ Uses

As with SBLHS² §8.4.2, you might find IATG³’s abbreviation-sorted list particularly helpful for deciphering abbrevaitions you come across. But when you come to IATG³ because SBLHS² doesn’t include a given abbreviation, you’ll find IATG³’s second, title-sorted list most helpful.

An Example

For instance, let’s say you’re citing an article from Scriptura. You consult SBLHS² §8.4.1, and you find that this section doesn’t give you a corresponding abbreviation.

This is where you consult IATG³’s second, title-sorted list. There, you’ll find four different sources with this name (p. 632). And if you’re looking for the Scriptura produced in South Africa, you’ll see that IATG³’s abbreviation is Scr.(S).

An Inconclusive Conclusion

At this point, you might think you’ve found in IATG³ the abbreviation that you’re meant to use. And indeed you might have. But you also might not have. Before you can know, you need to do one final check.

4. Double check SBLHS² for the abbreviation in IATG³.

Sometimes, IATG³ and SBLHS² assigns the same abbrevations to different sources.² So, before you use an abbrevaition from IATG³, you need to verify that SBLHS² doesn’t already use this abbreviation to mean something else.

This is because SBLHS² is a higher-level style authority than IATG³. You only use IATG³ to fill in the gaps that SBLHS² doesn’t cover.

An Example

For example, let’s say you’re citing something from the “Herders biblische Studien” series. You consult SBLHS² and see that it doesn’t include an abbreviation for this source. You then consult IATG³. There, you find for this series the abbreviation “HBS” (p. 424).

As you double check this abbreviation in SBLHS², however, you consult §8.4.2. Although you don’t find “Herders biblische Studien” in §8.4.1, you do find “HBS” in §8.4.2. And in SBLHS², “HBS” doesn’t mean “Herders biblische Studien.” It means instead “History of Biblical Studies” (p. 235).³

Possible Resolutions

What do you do in this case? Or what do you do if neither SBLHS² nor IATG³ has an abbreviation for the title you’re citing? In such cases, you basically have two options.

Use a Custom Abbreviation

If you’re writing a longer-format piece (e.g., a thesis or dissertation), you can probably create your own abbreviation list. In that list, you can define custom abbreviations for these sources and others. Or if you only use “Herders biblische Studien,” you could explicitly define “HBS” as this source and not as “History of Biblical Studies.”

Don’t Use an Abbreviation

On the other hand, you might not be able to define custom abbreviations. Journals, for instance, aren’t going to print a custom abbreviations page just for one article or issue.

In such cases, your main other option is not to use an abbreviation at all if either

• IATG³ doesn’t provide one or
• IATG³ provides one that conflicts with how SBLHS² uses that same abbreviation.

In these cases, you’d simply write out the title in full each time. That way, you avoid ambiguity and also don’t need to explicitly define such abbreviations.

Conclusion

At first blush, IATG³’s hundreds of pages of abbreviations can be intimidating. But by following these four steps, you get used to IATG³ pretty quickly. As you do, you can use IATG³ seamlessly alongside SBLHS² to compose your citations.