bibtex
Process bibliography references for LaTeX documents
TLDR
Process the bibliography for a document (pass the basename, without the .aux extension)
$ bibtex [document]
Process a specific .aux filecopy
$ bibtex [document.aux]
Operate silently, printing only error messagescopy
$ bibtex -terse [document]
Set the minimum number of cross references for automatic inclusioncopy
$ bibtex -min-crossrefs=[number] [document]
copy
SYNOPSIS
bibtex [options] auxname[.aux]
DESCRIPTION
bibtex processes bibliography information for LaTeX documents. It reads .aux files produced by LaTeX, looks up citations in .bib bibliography databases, formats them according to a bibliography style (.bst), and generates a .bbl file that LaTeX includes in the final document.The tool is essential for academic writing and managing citations in LaTeX.
PARAMETERS
-terse
Operate silently, printing only error messages.-min-crossrefs=number
Minimum number of cross references required before a crossref base entry is automatically included in the bibliography (default: 2). Set a large value to disable automatic inclusion.-help
Display help and exit.-version
Display version information and exit.
WORKFLOW
$ # 1. Run LaTeX (generates .aux with citations)
pdflatex document.tex
# 2. Run BibTeX (processes bibliography)
bibtex document
# 3. Run LaTeX twice more (to resolve references)
pdflatex document.tex
pdflatex document.tex
pdflatex document.tex
# 2. Run BibTeX (processes bibliography)
bibtex document
# 3. Run LaTeX twice more (to resolve references)
pdflatex document.tex
pdflatex document.tex
copy
FILES
document.tex
LaTeX source with \cite commandsrefs.bib
Bibliography databasedocument.aux
Auxiliary file (LaTeX output)document.bbl
Formatted bibliography (BibTeX output)document.blg
BibTeX log file
BIBLIOGRAPHY STYLE
Common styles:plain
Numeric citations, sorted alphabetically.alpha
Alpha-numeric citation labels.abbrv
Like plain, but with abbreviated first names, months, and journal names.unsrt
Like plain, but entries appear in citation order.ieeetr
IEEE Transactions style.
BIB FORMAT
$ @article{key2023,
author = {Author, First},
title = {Article Title},
journal = {Journal Name},
year = {2023},
volume = {10},
pages = {1-20}
}
author = {Author, First},
title = {Article Title},
journal = {Journal Name},
year = {2023},
volume = {10},
pages = {1-20}
}
copy
CAVEATS
Requires multiple LaTeX/BibTeX runs. Error messages can be cryptic. BibTeX syntax strict. Modern alternative: biblatex/biber. Unicode support limited (use biber for full Unicode).
HISTORY
BibTeX was created by Oren Patashnik in 1985 as part of the LaTeX document preparation system to manage bibliographies.