Common knowledge is defined as “knowledge that most educated people know or can find out easily in an encyclopedia or dictionary” (Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning, n.d.).
Common knowledge is divided into key categories, including:
- Birth dates of famous people
- Geographical features
- Historical dates
- Title of a book or painting
- Basic knowledge fundamental in a field or discipline
Information that Need a Citation:
- If information is not considered common knowledge, it needs to be cited. Information, work, ideas, or interpretations that are not your own need to be cited. There are some key categories of information that always need to be cited and are NOT considered common knowledge:
- An image, graphic, or work that is not your own
- Interpretation of facts that are not your own
- Detailed statistics
