Throughout history, different cultural, social and economic events forced the appearance of control, commercial, financial and fiscal methods, among which is accounting. Its antecedents date almost from the same origins of man in society; likewise in America and specifically in Colombia, accounting had a birth, transformation and development, before and after its colonization.
Historical evolution of accounting
There are several accounts regarding the accounting practice carried out in remote times due to its lack of truthfulness. We will focus on the analysis that constitutes the object of accounting activity, which is to preserve a continuous testimony of the economic events that occurred in the past, so we have three conditions for creating accounting: (1)
- That we find man constituting a social unit and therefore linked to other men by common needs. That they participate in economic activities in such a number of importance that it has been necessary to use a testimony of a perennial nature in the conservation of their information that would serve as It helps weak human memory. That there is a generally accepted means by which information about the narration of events in the past (scriptures) can be preserved and that it is both capable of recording numbers (numbers) and therefore both measure of value unit.
Representative facts of accounting in ancient times.
During the time of Slavery, what was common property became private property and in a way the first organization of the state occurred. The defeated tribes were subjected as slaves, making this one of the most important facts of accounting, because the most intelligent slave named NOMENCLATOR (2) had the mission of keeping the accounts of the master's slaves, since these they were considered assets.
At this time there was a society that was a symbol of slavery due to the existence of powerful armies that flooded its golden state and slaves, "Roman Society"; Where economic facts related to accounting come from since there were different books such as ": ADVERSARIA", where daily income and expenses were recorded. “EL CODEX O TUBULAE”, where income was placed in the column (Acceptum) and expenses in the other column (Expensum). (EL CODEX ACCEPTI - ET EXPENSI) that faithfully reproduced the state of the “ARCA” box.
In Rome there were many struggles between Patricians and Commoners, particularly for reasons of debts and abuses committed by creditors (patricians), against debtors, due to this the need to implement legislative measures such as the "PAETIELA PAPIRIA" (year 428) was seen. Rome, 325 BC imposed by Marco Tulio Cicero); Which was based on the inscription of the name of the debtor in the creditor's CODEX with the consent of the first and the mention of the amount of life to create the obligation in favor of the creditor.
After Slavery, Feudalism appears, where power is not in the number of slaves but in the land. The church becomes a predominant sector as the first banking institution, which granted loans and appropriated the lands as punishment for non-payment, today this is the legal collection. At this time Roman Accounting prevailed, where the double entry was really promoted and also the auxiliary books appear with specific provisions such as: (3)
- Operations log in chronological order. No blanks could be left between games. Mention of the document supporting the operation.
Later in the time of mercantilism, two events marked its development: the growth of the monetary economy and the emergence of Nationalist States. During the 16th century, accounting activity entered a period of great boom, both in the economic field and in the professional field. Carlos V issued in Valladolid a Royal Cédula in which the operations must be registered, and it is established that all must be signed by the accountant and the treasurer, this is “The Fundamental Control Principle”.
Luca Paciolo, developer of the double game
When the printing press appeared in Europe, in the second half of the 15th century, great works of a wide variety of themes came to light. As for accounting studies, it could be said that the first works to be published were not the first to be written, such is the case of Benedetto Cotrugli Rangeo, a native of Dalmatia, author of Della mercatura et del mercante perfetto, a work that he finished writing on 25 August 1458 and yet it was not published until 1573, this small book gives instructions for the practice of commerce making reference to double-entry accounting and the use of 3 books: Quaderno (major), Giornale (newspaper), and Memoriale (draft). (4)
Studying history, it can be seen that it was not Paciolo who discovered the double game, since several writers had already developed it before him; however, Fray Luca Paciolo, born in 1445, in the village of San Sepolcro, province of Tuscany; deserves recognition for the first printed edition of the subject, because the works produced hundreds of years ago, were all handwritten.
The life of this illustrious personage deserves an analysis for a better understanding of his work, which inaugurated a new phase in accounting literature and whose effects continue to this day. Fray Luca Paciolo was a monk of the order of San Francisco de Asís, in his youth he settled in Venice with a prominent Jewish merchant named Antonio Rompíais, there he studied at the Domenico Bragadino school a "public reader of mathematics" (5), spent several years of his life outside Venice studying the great mathematical theories and it is speculated that in that period he began to be related to accounting, when he returned, he printed his famous Summa de arithmetica, geometria, proportioni et proportionalita (All about arithmetic, geometry, proportions and proportionalities), in the year 1494.
There is no evidence to assure that Paciolo was the author of the double-entry method, quite the contrary, he textually states that he followed the method that was then applied in Venice. The double-entry method is considered to have been based on Cortugli's treatise, who is known to have studied it 40 years before Paciolo published his work. Paciolo's purpose was to design an accounting system to provide the merchant with timely information regarding his assets and obligations.
Regarding the subject, Paciolo gives an explanation of the inventory saying that it is a list of assets and liabilities made by the owner of the company before starting activities, such inventory should be done in a single day; Every operation will be recorded by its credit and debit effects, the Ledger (Quaderno) usually had an index and was balanced when the pages ran out, this book was paid by two people, the closing balance was the same balance to open a new book, this process was called "Summa summarium", its closure was correct if debits and credits were the same, debit operations were known by the preposition "Per" and credit operations by "A".
Paciolo died in 1514 after having dedicated his life to mathematics and in particular to commercial mathematics. He invented procedures for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and it could even be said that the form of division today is just another invention of Paciolo and his publications are an important legacy that remain as the basis of current accounting.
Accounting and accounting profession in Colombia
Pre-Columbian Stage (6)
In pre-Columbian America, where three relatively developed cultures predominated (Aztec in Mexico, Inca in Peru, and Chibcha in Colombia), alphabetical writing was not known.
Despite this, accounting activity was common practice among Aborigines; for example, the Aztecs kept accounts of the tributes they collected from the subject tribes; the Incas kept their accounts in bows with knots representing figures, and the chibchas, whose trade was carried out through the barter of merchandise, recorded their transactions with colors painted on their costumes.
Conquest Stage (7)
With the arrival of the Spanish in American territory, an unprecedented economic activity began in this region. The conquerors obtained from the crown multiple concessions, which began the exploitation not only of natural resources but also of the aborigines. Thus, the Spanish manages to impose in these lands, in addition to its mercantile culture and customs, its accounting practices.
Upon learning of the consolidation of the American conquest, in 1522, Carlos V, by means of a royal certificate, names Rodrigo de Albornoz as the royal accountant of these lands, and together with his accreditation, provides him with very precise instructions on the registration of commercial operations.
Stage of the Colony "The double game in America"
Later, in 1591, King Felipe II ordered the accounting of the kingdom to be carried out twice, highlighting in this way the Italian influence on Spanish accounting. The colonists established in the American territory a series of institutions of a socio-economic nature with the purpose of exploiting the aborigine; For example, the Encomienda (obligation represented in personal services and natural products by the settler), the Tribute for the encomendero, Pensions for individuals, the King's Fifth, the Salary for the corregidores and the Mita became important sources of income for the crown.
During the Colony, the Church was without a doubt the most powerful institution in the New Kingdom; He appropriated large areas of land, both rural and urban, by changing the method of force used by the settlers, for teaching and evangelization.
In 1605, three courts of accounts were established in America (Santa Fe, Lima, and Mexico), special accountants were appointed in Havana and Caracas, and accounting management standards were issued. In 1678, Felipe IV determined that the royal accountants were to present accounts every two years in terms of "position" and "data" (should and must) to the Royal Court of Accounts. In this way, the control and registration of taxes collected and administered by the crown was achieved.
The greatest contribution to the development of accounting in America was provided by the religious community of the Society of Jesus, which introduced for the first time in these lands accounting books, the concept of inventories, the notion of budgets and other elements developed in the Europe of that time. Accounting was not exercised as a liberal profession, but by clerics as part of their administrative activities in religious communities.
Stage of The Republic "The professional accountant"
In Colombia, after independence, the accounting techniques brought by the Spanish continued to be used for a long time, in accordance with the Bilbao ordinances. The emergence of the Republic did not bring about profound changes in socio-economic structures; French influence extended beyond the cultural field, leaving the colonial university behind, which gave way to the French model of emphasis on professionalization.
This trend gave rise to the 1826 reform, inspired by General Santander, and guiding the creation of the Universidad de la Gran Colombia with headquarters in Bogotá, Quito and Caracas.
Current stage "Accounting Legislation"
In 1821, through the law of October 6, the General Accounting Office is organized, in order to regulate the operation of the Finance Accounting Office with five accountants under official appointment. Thirty years later, the Court of Accounts is replaced by the General Accounts Office, where an official named Chief Accountant President is established as chief. In the year of 1873 the Fiscal Code is elaborated.
According to the Commercial Code of 1887, all merchants are required to keep at least four accounting books: Journal, Ledger, Inventories and Balances, together with the letter copying book; in the following years the norms and procedures for the handling of these books are established. At the beginning of the present century and as a result of the development of the country's commercial, financial and industrial activity, the statutory audit was regulated, and some tax regulations were decreed in order to encourage private investment.
Around that time, companies such as the Colombian Company of Tissues and the Colombian Beer Company of Medellín emerged; Yarn and Fabrics Obregón de Barranquilla; Bavaria and Germania Breweries and Samper Cements in Bogotá.
Parallel to this development, the need for commercial and accounting training arose, and the School of Commerce of the University of Antioquia was created in 1901 and the National School of Commerce of Bogotá in 1905. Years later, these examples were followed by other cities in the country, which ultimately gave rise to the definitive organization of guilds of accountants.
In 1923 Law 17 was issued, through which the National School of Commerce was expanded and its teachings were oriented according to European models. The industrial activity continued its development to promote the creation of public limited companies, for which the Government issued Law 58 of 1931, through which the figure of the Statutory Auditor was created. Article 46 of this law recognized the profession of sworn accountant.
Over the years, some additional laws were enacted to regulate the accounting profession; for example, Law 73 of 1935, related to the accounting management of public and private companies and the exercise of the profession, established regulatory standards for the exercise of the profession in the country. In 1951 the National Institute of Public Accountants (INCP) was created, made up of highly experienced accountants.
Four years later the Colombian Academy of Certified Public Accountants (Adeconti) was organized. Law 145 of 1960 definitively regulated the exercise of the profession and established the necessary requirements for its practice.
In 1961 Decree 1651 was issued, which established the rules and procedures required to practice the profession, keep accounts, authorize financial statements and prepare income statements. Today the principles and rules of accounting are described in Decree 2649 of 1993, pending the possible adoption of international standards that would repeal not only law but also history.
The history of accounting will not possibly teach how to attack a current financial problem, but it can demonstrate how it has been rectified and the gaps that the accountant, possibly in solving the problem, does not take into account and that they are capable of scrutinizing.; it will surely add problems to the one you want to study and this is definitely what contributes to expanding accounting actions.
Bibliography
Franco ruiz rafael. Development of accounting education in Colombia, In: Accounting Reflections, 1985, pp. 131-160.
Gertz Malero Federico. Origin and evolution of accounting, Mexico City, Editorial Trillas, 1976.
Lopes de sa antonio. Luca Pacioli Man of the Renaissance, In: Magazine Legis del Contador, 10th, 2002, pp. 83-97.
Father Nicholls de francisco, reyes guillermo, benavides alvaro. Accounting Research Principles, Bogotá, Publications Department Universidad Externado de Colombia, 1986.
Notes:
(1) Gertz Manero Federico. Origin and evolution of accounting, Mexico City, Editorial Trillas, 1976.pp.17-18.
(2) Franco Ruiz Rafael. Historical characteristics of accounting teaching, In: Accounting Reflections, 1985, pp. 104
(3) Gertz Manero Federico. Origin and evolution of accounting, Mexico City, Editorial Trillas, 1976.pp.74-75.
(4) Gertz Manero Federico. Origin and evolution of accounting, Mexico City, Editorial Trillas, 1976.pp.84
(5) Lopes De Sá Antonio. Luca Pacioli Man of the Renaissance, In: Magazine Legis del Contador, 10th, 2002, pp. 87
(6) Franco Ruiz Rafael. Development of accounting education in Colombia, In: Accounting Reflections, 1985, pp. 131.
(7) Franco Ruiz Rafael. Development of accounting education in Colombia, In: Accounting Reflections, 1985, pp. 137
