The history of accounting is as old as civilization
itself, key to important phases of history, and
among the most important professions in business.
History shows that the accounting field is a
stable, rewarding profession. By majoring in
accounting, you will become an integral part
of a business management team and leader in organizational
decision making process.
Some key events include:
- Accountants participated in the
development of cities, trade, and the concepts
of wealth and numbers.
- Accountants participated in the development
of money and banking, invented double entry
bookkeeping saved many Industrial Revolution
inventors and entrepreneurs from bankruptcy,
helped develop the confidence in capital markets
necessary for western capitalism, and are central
to the information revolution that is transforming
the global economy.
- It is now
evident that writing developed over at least
5,000 years—by accountants.
- Industrial Revolution firms
required accountants to provide the information
necessary to avoid bankruptcy and their role
developed into a profession.
- Big business required
capital markets that depended on accurate and
useful information. This was supplied by the
expanding accounting profession.
- Today, a global
real-time integrated information system is
a near reality, suggesting new accounting paradigms.
- Understanding
history is needed to develop the linkages to
predict this future.
|
| Retrieved
November 8, 2006 from the Accounting History
Page website at acct.tamu.edu. |
