The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association or MLA, is the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "strengthen the study and teaching of language and literature".
The MLA Handbook (9th edition, 2021) is MLA's official guide to writing style and to preparing works for publication. It is also used by students as a guide to writing and formatting academic papers not intended for publication. The MLA Handbook is not only used in literature and language; it is also widely used by scholars and students in the humanities and fine arts. The MLA Handbook can be purchased in print or as an ebook; there is not an online version.
The MLA Style Center website provides these pages for basic information:
