How many of them do you know?
1. Luca Pacioli – the father of accounting
The Italian mathematician Luca Pacioli is considered the “father” of accounting. On 10 November (today – International Accountants’ Day) 1494, he published Summa de Arithmetica, Geometria, Proportioni et Proportionalita – the first book to include accounts of assets, liabilities, capital, income and expenditure.
The accounts are similar to the ones we use today in accounting balance sheets.
2. The first bookkeepers in history originated in Ancient Mesopotamia
Accounting has a thousand-year history that can be traced back to Ancient Mesopotamia.
The world’s first accountants worked for the Church, tracking the taxes paid for sheep and farm produce in the temples.
Regarding this process, many historians believe that this is when the practice of writing was invented to keep track of income. Previously, record keeping often used symbolic systems to document the exchange of goods and services.
3. Many accounting terms have Latin roots
Accounting may be called the “language of business,” but did you know that many well-known accounting terms are derived from Latin?
The word “debit” means “he owes” and “credit” means “he believes.” The word “accountant” is derived from the Latin “computare” meaning “number”.
4. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland (ICAS) is the oldest professional accountancy body in the world
Founded in 1854 by the Society of Accountants in Edinburgh. Robert Gordon Simpson was elected as the first president of ICAS in 1951.
5. In many Oscar-winning films, one of the main characters is an accountant
Ben Kingsley in “Schindler’s List”, Charles Martin Smith in “The Untouchables”, Gene Wilder in “The Producers”, Jack Lemmon in “The Apartment” – they all played the role of an accountant in the listed Oscar-winning films.
Other famous accountant roles in cinema include Tim Robbins in The Shawshank Redemption and the hilarious Louis Tully in Ghostbusters.
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