Accountancy (profession)^[1] or accounting (methodology) is the measurement, statement or provision of assurance about financial information primarily used by managers, investors, tax authorities and other decision makers to make resource allocation decisions within companies, organizations, and public agencies. The term profession is applied to those persons who have specialized and technical skill or knowledge which they apply for a fee to certain tasks that ordinary and unqualified people cannot Methodology (also called manner) is defined as "the analysis of the principles of methods rules and postulates employed by a discipline" ManaGeR ( MGR) is a graphical Window system. The MGR server provides a builtin Window manager and windowed graphics Terminal emulation on color See Investor AB for the Swedish investment company An investor is any party that makes an Investment. Generally a company is a form of Business organization. The precise definition varies An organization (or organisation &mdash see spelling differences) is a social arrangement which pursues collective goals which controls its own performance and A government agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the Machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions The terms derive from the use of financial accounts. In Accountancy, an account is a label used for recording and reporting a Quantity of almost anything

Accounting (Definition) is a service activity. A definition is a statement of the meaning of a Word or Phrase. Its function is to provide quantitative information primarily financial in nature, about economic entities, that is intended to be useful in making economic decisions, and in making reasoned choices among alternative courses of action. ^[2]

It is also the discipline of measuring, communicating and interpreting financial activity. Accounting is also widely referred to as the "language of business". ^[3]

Financial accounting is one branch of accounting and historically has involved processes by which financial information about a business is recorded, classified, summarised, interpreted, and communicated; for public companies, this information is generally publicly-accessible. Financial accountancy (or financial accounting) is the field of Accountancy concerned with the preparation of Financial statements for decision makers By contrast management accounting information is used within an organisation and is usually confidential and accessible only to a small group, mostly decision-makers. Management accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of Accounting information to managers within organizations to provide them with the basis to make informed business Tax Accounting is the accounting needed to comply with jurisdictional tax regulations.

Practitioners of accountancy are known as accountants. An accountant is a practitioner of Accountancy, which is the measurement disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers investors There are many professional bodies for accountants throughout the world. Many allow their members to use titles indicating their membership or qualification level. Examples are Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA or FCCA), Chartered Accountant (FCA, CA or ACA), Management Accountant (ACMA, FCMA or AICWA), Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified General Accountant (CGA or FCGA). Chartered Certified Accountant (Designatory letters ACCA or FCCA) is a British qualified accountant designation awarded by the Association The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants ( ACCA) is a British chartered accountancy body with a global presence that offers the Chartered Certified Chartered Accountant (CA is the title used by members of certain professional Accountancy associations in the British Commonwealth countries and Ireland Management accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of Accounting information to managers within organizations to provide them with the basis to make informed business Certified Public Accountant ( CPA) is the Statutory title of qualified Accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform ' Certified General Accountant (CGA' is a professional designation representing members of the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada (CGA- Canada) provincial

Auditing is a related but separate discipline, with two sub-disciplines: internal auditing and external auditing. A financial audit, or more accurately an audit of financial statements, is the examination by an independent third party of the financial statements of a company Internal auditing is a profession and activity involved in advising organizations regarding how to better achieve their objectives An External auditor is an audit Professional who performs an audit on the Financial statements of a company, Government, External auditing is the process whereby an independent auditor examines an organisation's financial statements and accounting records in order to express an opinion as to the truth and fairness of the statements and the accountant's adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), or International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), in all material respects. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP is the standard framework of guidelines for Financial accounting. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS are standards and interpretations adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB Internal auditing aims at providing information for management usage, and is typically carried out by auditors employed by the company, and sometimes by external service providers.

Accounting/accountancy attempts to create accurate financial reports that are useful to managers, regulators, and other stakeholders such as shareholders, creditors, or owners. Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of a business' financial A corporate stakeholder is a party who affects or can be affected by the company's actions A mutual shareholder or stockholder is an Individual or company (including a Corporation) that legally owns one or more shares of A creditor is a party (eg person organization company or government that has a claim to the services of a second party The day-to-day record-keeping involved in this process is known as bookkeeping. Bookkeeping (also book-keeping or book keeping) is the recording of all Financial transactions undertaken by an individual or Organization (including

Accounting scholarship is the academic discipline which studies accounting/accountancy. Accounting scholarship is an Academic discipline oriented towards the profession of accounting, usually taught at a Business school.

Contents 1 Modern accounting 2 History of accounting 2.1 Early history 2.2 Luca Pacioli and the birth of modern accountancy 2.3 Post-Pacioli 3 Accountancy qualifications and regulation 4 The "Big Four" accountancy firms 5 Topics in accounting 5.1 Auditing 5.2 Accountancy methods and fields 5.3 Accounting Principles 5.3.1 Accounting concepts 5.3.2 Accounting conventions 5.3.3 Tools for accounting 6 Types of accountancy 7 See also 8 Lists of related topics 9 Notes and references 10 External links

Modern accounting

Accounting is the process of identifying, measuring and communicating economic information so a user of the information may make informed economic judgments and decisions based on it.

Accounting is the degree of measurement of financial transactions which are transfers of legal property rights made under contractual relationships. Non-financial transactions are specifically excluded due to conservatism and materiality principles.

At the heart of modern financial accounting is the double-entry bookkeeping system. In Accountancy, the double-entry This system involves making at least two entries for every transaction: a debit in one account, and a corresponding credit in another account. Debit and credit are formal Bookkeeping and Accounting terms They are the most fundamental concepts in accounting representing the two records that one Debit and credit are formal Bookkeeping and Accounting terms They are the most fundamental concepts in accounting representing the two records that one The sum of all debits should always equal the sum of all credits, providing a simple way to check for errors. This system was first used in medieval Europe, although claims have been made that the system dates back to Ancient Rome or Greece. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca

According to critics of standard accounting practices, it has changed little since. Publicly-traded Companies are required to follow certain accounting rules when presenting Financial statements so that the readers of the statements can easily compare different Accounting reform measures of some kind have been taken in each generation to attempt to keep bookkeeping relevant to capital assets or production capacity. Accounting reform is an expansion to Accounting rules that goes beyond the realm of financial measures for both individual economic entities and national economies However, these have not changed the basic principles, which are supposed to be independent of economics as such. Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. In recent times, the divergence of accounting from economic principles has resulted in controversial reforms to make financial reports more indicative of economic reality.

History of accounting

Early history

Accountancy's infancy dates back to the earliest days of human agriculture and civilization (the Sumerians in Mesopotamia), when the need to maintain accurate records of the quantities and relative values of agricultural products first arose. Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture A Civilization is a society in which large numbers of people share a variety of common elements Sumer ( Sumerian: sux-Latn [[Ki (earth ki]]-[[EN (cuneiform en]]-'''ĝir15''', Akkadian: Šumeru; possibly Biblical Shinar Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding This need for record keeping was the synthesis of writing. Simple accounting is mentioned in the Christian Bible (New Testament) in the Book of Matthew, in the Parable of the Talents ^[4]. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin The Gospel of Matthew (Gk Κατά Ματθαίον Ευαγγέλιον is one of the four Canonical gospels in the New Testament and is a Synoptic gospel The Islamic Quran also mentions simple accounting for trade and credit arrangements ^[5]. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran

Twelfth-century A. D. Arab writer Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned in his book Hisba (literally, "verification" or "calculation") detailed accounting systems used by Muslims as early as in the mid-seventh century A. Taqi ad-Din Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah ( January 22, 1263 &ndash 1328 was a Sunni Islamic scholar born in Harran, located A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion The 7th century is the period from 601 to 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. D. These accounting practices were influenced by the Roman and the Persian civilisations that Muslims interacted with. The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia The most detailed example Ibn Taymiyyah provides of a complex governmental accounting system is the Divan of Umar, the second Caliph of Islam, in which all revenues and disbursements were recorded. Umar (a=عمر بن الخطاب|t=`Umar ibn al-Khattāb c 581-83 CE &ndash 7 November, 644) also known as Umar the Great or Omar the Great The Caliph is the Head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the leader of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The Divan of Umar has been described in detail by various Islamic historians and was used by Muslim rulers in the Middle East with modifications and enhancements until the fall of the Ottoman Empire. A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish

Luca Pacioli and the birth of modern accountancy

Luca Pacioli (1445 - 1517), also known as Friar Luca dal Borgo, is credited for the "birth" of accounting. Jacopo de' Barbari, sometimes known or referred to as de'Barbari de Barberi de Barbari Barbaro Barberino Barbarigo or Barberigo (c Fra Luca Bartolomeo de Pacioli (sometimes Paciolo) (1446/7&ndash1517 was an Italian Mathematician and Franciscan friar collaborator with His Summa de arithmetica, geometrica, proportioni et proportionalita (Summa on arithmetic, geometry, proportions and proportionality, Venice 1494), was a textbook for use in the abbaco schools of northern Italy, where the sons of merchants and craftsmen were educated. Summa and its diminutive summula (plural summae viz summulae) are mainly used in English and other modern langages for texts that 'sum up' knowledge Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the It was a compendium of the mathematical knowledge of his time, and includes the first printed description of the method of keeping accounts that Venetian merchants used at that time, known as the double-entry accounting system. In Accountancy, the double-entry Although Pacioli codified rather than invented this system, he is widely regarded as the "Father of Accounting". The system he published included most of the accounting cycle as we know it today. He described the use of journals and ledgers, and warned that a person should not go to sleep at night until the debits equalled the credits! His ledger had accounts for assets (including receivables and inventories), liabilities, capital, income, and expenses — the account categories that are reported on an organisation's balance sheet and income statement, respectively. In Financial accounting, a balance sheet or statement of financial position is a summary of a person's or organization's balances An Income Statement, also called a Profit and Loss Statement (P&L is a financial statement for companies that indicates how Revenue (money He demonstrated year-end closing entries and proposed that a trial balance be used to prove a balanced ledger. His treatise also touches on a wide range of related topics from accounting ethics to cost accounting.

Post-Pacioli

The first known book in the English language on accounting was published in London, England by John Gouge (or Gough) in 1543. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland It is described as A Profitable Treatyce called the Instrument or Boke to learn to know the good order of the kepyng of the famouse reconynge, called in Latin, Dare and Habere, and, in English, debtor and Creditor.

A short book of instructions was also published in 1588 by John Mellis of Southwark, England, in which he says, "I am but the renuer and reviver of an ancient old copies printed here in London the 14 of August 1543: collected, published, made, and set forth by one Hugh Oldcastle, Schoolmaster, who, as reappeared by his treatise, then taught Arithmetics, and this booke in Saint Ollaves parish in Marko Lane. Southwark or The Borough is an area of south-east London in the London Borough of Southwark, situated 1 England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland " Mellis refers to the fact that the principle of accounts he explains (which is a simple system of double entry) is "after the former of Venice".

A book described as The Merchants Mirrour, or directions for the perfect ordering and keeping of his accounts formed by way of Debitor and Creditor, after the (so termed) Italian manner, by Richard Dafforne, accountant, published in 1635, contains many references to early books on the science of accountancy. In a chapter in this book, headed "Opinion of Book-keeping's Antiquity," the author states, on the authority of another writer, that the form of book-keeping referred to had then been in use in Italy about two hundred years, "but that the same, or one in many parts very like this, was used in the time of Julius Caesar, and in Rome long before. " He gives quotations of Latin book-keeping terms in use in ancient times, and refers to "ex Oratione Ciceronis pro Roscio Comaedo"; and he adds:

"That the one side of their booke was used for Debitor, the other for Creditor, is manifest in a certain place, Naturalis Historiae Plinii, lib. 2, cap. 7, where hee, speaking of Fortune, saith thus:

Huic Omnia Expensa.

Huic Omnia Feruntur accepta et in tota Ratione mortalium sola.

Utramque Paginam facit. "

An early Dutch writer appears to have suggested that double-entry book-keeping was even in existence among the Greeks, pointing to scientific accountancy having been invented in remote times. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands

There were several editions of Richard Dafforne's book - the second edition in 1636, the third in 1656, and another in 1684. The book is a very complete treatise on scientific accountancy, beautifully prepared and containing elaborate explanations. The numerous editions tend to prove that the science was highly appreciated in the 17th century. From this time on, there has been a continuous supply of literature on the subject, many of the authors styling themselves accountants and teachers of the art, and thus proving that the professional accountant was then known and employed.

Accountancy qualifications and regulation

Main article: Accountant

See also: List of accountancy bodies

The expectations for qualification in the profession of accounting vary between different jurisdictions and countries. An accountant is a practitioner of Accountancy, which is the measurement disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers investors This is a list of the various professional bodies and organisations that seek to provide regulation and oversight over individuals and firms operating in the Accountancy industry

Accountants may be certified by a variety of organisations or bodies, such as the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT),^[6] British qualified accountancy bodies including the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and Institute of Chartered Accountants, and are recognised by titles such as Chartered Management Accountant (ACMA or FCMA) Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA or FCCA) and Chartered Accountant (UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Ghana), Certified Public Accountant (Ireland, Japan, US, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines), Certified Management Accountant (Canada, U. British qualified accountants are full members of those United Kingdom Accountancy bodies which are themselves members of the Consultative Committee of Accountancy The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA is a UK based professional body offering training and qualification in management accountancy and related subjects focused The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants ( ACCA) is a British chartered accountancy body with a global presence that offers the Chartered Certified The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW was established by a Royal Charter in 1880 Accountancy in Hong Kong is regulated by the HKICPA under the Professional Accountants Ordinance (Chapter 50 Laws of Hong Kong) The title Certified Management Accountant is a professional designation awarded by various professional bodies around the world S. ), Certified General Accountant (Canada), or Certified Practicing Accountant (Australia). CPA Australia is one of three professional accounting bodies in Australia, the others being the National Institute of Accountants and the Institute Some Commonwealth countries (Australia and Canada) often recognise both the certified and chartered accounting bodies. The majority of "public" accountants in New Zealand and Canada are Chartered Accountants; however, Certified General Accountants are also authorised by legislation to practice public accounting and auditing in all Canadian provinces, except Ontario and Quebec, as of 2005. There is, however, no legal requirement for an accountant to be a paid-up member of one of the many Institutes.

The "Big Four" accountancy firms

The "Big Four auditors" are the largest multinational accountancy firms. The Big 4, sometimes written as the Big Four, are the four largest international Accountancy and Professional services firms which handle the vast majority Multinational corporation ( MNC) or transnational corporation ( TNC) is a Corporation or enterprise that manages Production or delivers

• PricewaterhouseCoopers
• Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
• KPMG
• Ernst & Young

These firms are associations of the partnerships in each country rather than having the classical structure of holding company and subsidiaries, but each has an international 'umbrella' organization for coordination (technically known as a Swiss Verein). PricewaterhouseCoopers (or PwC is one of the world's largest Professional services firms Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (also branded as Deloitte) is one of the largest Professional services firms in the world and one of the Big Four auditors, along KPMG is one of the largest Professional services firms in the world Ernst & Young is one of the largest Professional services firms in the world and one of the Big Four auditors, along with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC, A Swiss Verein (" Verein " is German for "Union" is a legal structure in Swiss law

Before the Enron and other accounting scandals in the United States, there were five large firms and were called the Big Five: Arthur Andersen, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and Ernst & Young. Enron Creditors Recovery Corporation (formerly Enron Corporation, former NYSE ticker symbol ENE was an American Energy company based in Accounting scandals, or corporate accounting scandals are political and business scandals which arise with the disclosure of misdeeds by trusted executives Arthur Andersen LLP, based in Chicago, was once one of the "Big Five" accounting firms among PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte Touche

On June 15, 2002, Arthur Andersen was convicted (later overturned) of obstruction of justice for shredding documents related to its audit of Enron. Events 763 BC - Assyrians record a Solar eclipse that will be used to fix the Chronology of Mesopotamian history See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Nancy Temple (Andersen Legal Dept. Nancy Anne Temple was an in-house attorney for Arthur Andersen who advised Michael Odom and David B ) and David Duncan (Lead Partner for the Enron account) were cited as the responsible managers in this scandal as they had given the order to shred relevant documents. David Duncan (born 1960 is the United States government's star Witness in the Arthur Andersen trial. Since the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission does not allow convicted felons to audit public companies, the firm agreed to surrender its licenses and its right to practice before the SEC on August 31, 2002. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (commonly known as the SEC) is an independent agency of the United States government which holds primary responsibility Events 1056 - Byzantine Empress Theodora becomes ill dying suddenly a few days later without children to succeed the Throne See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. A plurality of Arthur Andersen joined KPMG in the US and Deloitte & Touche outside of the US. KPMG is one of the largest Professional services firms in the world Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (also branded as Deloitte) is one of the largest Professional services firms in the world and one of the Big Four auditors, along Historically, there had also been groupings referred to as the "Big Six" (Arthur Andersen, plus Coopers & Lybrand before its merger with Price Waterhouse) and the "Big Eight" (Ernst and Young prior to their merger were Ernst & Whinney and Arthur Young and Deloitte & Touche was formed by the merger of Deloitte, Haskins and Sells with the firm Touche Ross).

The accounting scandals at Enron and other high profile companies in the USA and Europe have had, and continue to have, far-reaching consequences for the accounting industry. Application of International Accounting Standards originating in International Accounting Standards Board headquartered in London and bearing more resemblance to UK than current US practices is often advocated by those who note the relative stability of the UK accounting system (which reformed itself after scandals in the late 1980s and early 1990s). International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS are standards and interpretations adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB founded on April 1 2001 is the successor of the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC founded in June In the US, generally accepted accounting principles, commonly abbreviated as US GAAP or simply GAAP, are accounting rules used to prepare present

Topics in accounting

See list of accounting topics for complete listing. Following is a list of accounting topics Accounting Ethics Accounting for risk Accounting information system

Auditing

• Assurance services
• Audit
• Information technology audit
• Internal audit

Accountancy methods and fields

• Lean accounting
• Cost accounting
• Cash-basis and accrual-basis accounting
• Financial accountancy
• Fund Accounting
• Internal and external accountancy
• Management accounting
• Project accounting
• Positive accounting
• Environmental accounting
• Tax accounting

Accounting Principles

Accounting principles, rules of conduct and action are described by various terms such as concepts, conventions, tenets, assumptions, axioms and postulates. Assurance services have been defined by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA as 'Independent Professional Services that improve information quality The most general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person organization system process project or product An information technology audit, or information systems audit, is an examination of the controls within an Information technology (IT Infrastructure. Internal auditing is a profession and activity involved in advising organizations regarding how to better achieve their objectives Lean accounting is Accounting for the lean enterprise It seeks to move from traditional cost accounting to a system that measures and motivates good business practices In Management accounting, cost accounting is that part of management accounting which establishes budget and actual cost of operations processes departments or product and Cash basis Cash-basis Accounting is a method of Bookkeeping that records financial events based on Cash flows and cash position Financial accountancy (or financial accounting) is the field of Accountancy concerned with the preparation of Financial statements for decision makers Fund Accounting is an accounting system often used by Nonprofit organizations and by the public sector Management accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of Accounting information to managers within organizations to provide them with the basis to make informed business Financial accountancy (or financial accounting) is the field of Accountancy concerned with the preparation of Financial statements for decision makers Management accounting is concerned with the provisions and use of Accounting information to managers within organizations to provide them with the basis to make informed business Project accounting (sometimes referred to as job cost accounting) is the practice of creating Financial reports specifically designed to track the financial progress Positive accounting is the branch of academic research in Accounting that seeks to explain and predict actual accounting practices

Accounting concepts

• Entity concept
• Dual aspect concept
• Going concern concept
• Accounting period concept
• Money measurement concept
• Historical Cost concept
• Realization concept
• Accounting methods (includes a discussion on the concept of accruals)
• Understandability
• Relevance
• Reliability
• Comparability
• Accrual (also known as Matching principle)
• Unified Ledger Accounting

Accounting conventions

• Convention of disclosure
• Convention of materiality
• Convention of consistency
• Convention of conservatism

Tools for accounting

• Accounting software
• Online accounting

Types of accountancy

The following list is intended to give some idea of the breadth and scope of the accountancy profession:

• lean accounting
• auditing
• bookkeeping
• chartered accountant
• cost accounting
• management accounting
• financial accounting
• forensic accounting
• taxation advice
• public accountancy
• internal accountancy
• external accountancy

See also

• Accounting ethics
• Accounting software for E-accounting
• Critical accounting policy
• Financial statements and Notes to the Financial Statements
• Green eyeshade
• Standard accounting practices
• Inflation accounting

Lists of related topics

• List of accounting topics
• List of accountancy bodies
• List of finance topics
• List of business law topics
• List of business ethics, political economy, and philosophy of business topics

Notes and references

External links

• Accounting Terminology Guide (New York Society of CPAs, United States)
• Wikinvestopedia Accounting Wiki Glossary — Wikinvestopedia

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic