Accounting History: From Ancient Civilizations to Modern Profession

Accounting in Ancient Civilizations

The earliest civilizations that arose on earth had to find a way to record certain facts with arithmetic projection, which occurred too often and too complex to be retained by the memory.

Mesopotamia

The famous Code of Hammurabi, promulgated about the year 1700 AD, contained criminal law, civilian and commercial standards. It regulated contracts such as loans, sales, leases, fees, deposits, and other forms of civil and commercial matters.

Egypt

If accounting was important among the peoples of Mesopotamia, it was even more necessary in a society as rigidly centralized as pharaonic Egypt.

Greece

The Hellenic temples, as had happened many centuries before in Mesopotamia and Egypt, were the first places in ancient Greece where it was necessary to develop an accounting technique.

Rome

The organizing genius of Rome, present in all aspects of public life, was also evident in the thoroughness with which individuals, state officials, bankers, and traders kept their accounts.

History of Accounting in Peru

Incas

In the Tahuantinsuyo, a kind of accounting system was developed through the quipus. This form of control emerged as an imperative given the complexity of what we might call the Inca tax system (mita).

The Aims and Objectives of Accounting

The definitions above largely agree on the purpose of accounting: it must be the basis for decision-making. The purpose of accounting science is to obtain adequate information for specific targets that can be used for decision-making by users of this information.

Professionalization

Law

We must remember that on September 11, 1959, Law No. 13253, the Law of Professional Accountants, was enacted. This law stipulates that accountants can make or authorize any kind of balance sheets, surveys, and appraisals. As an activity peculiar to the profession, they may perform audits for judicial and administrative purposes.