What do the abbreviations MLA and APA stand for in academic writing?

"MLA" stands for the Modern Language Association of America. This is a long-standing, highly reputable organization in existence since 1883. The MLA style format is primarily used within the humanities, and in particular for papers on the topics of literature and language arts. The APA format is a manner of writing a paper used in the fields of psychology, Social Sciences, and education. First established in 1929 by the American Psychological Association, it's a set of guidelines to help writers structure their paper accordingly for uniformity, formality, and ease of reading.