ISSN
Also called: International Standard Serial Number
An eight-digit identifier for a serial publication — a journal, magazine, or newspaper — rather than for any single article.
An ISSN names the periodical itself. It is what disambiguates two journals with confusingly similar titles, and it is how library systems track a subscription across title changes. Print and electronic versions of the same journal have separate ISSNs, sometimes linked by a “linking ISSN”.
Citation styles rarely ask for it. It matters when you need to be certain which journal you are dealing with — checking whether a journal is indexed, or whether an invitation to publish comes from the journal it claims to be.
See also
ISBNA 13-digit identifier for a specific edition and format of a book, assigned per product rather than per title.DOI (Digital Object Identifier)A permanent identifier for a document — usually a journal article — that resolves to its current location no matter how many times the publisher moves it.Predatory journalA journal that charges publication fees while providing little or no genuine peer review or editorial service.Volume and issueThe numbering that locates a journal article within a periodical's run: the volume is usually the year's worth, the issue a single instalment.