Financial accounting, commonly known in daily verbatim as
'book keeping', is one of the oldest practices integral of
business management. Financial accounting is officially dated to
the medieval ages when one of the first banking houses and
groups gained importance towards the public and in commercial
fields. The first bankers wanted an organised approach towards
maintaining set references that would act as formally laid
records for them, to be referred in the future or present, and
were meant to keep in touch of the financial situation of the
business. However, historically accounting methods go back to
ancient times when prestigious records were required to be
maintained.
Financial accounting is so important that nearly every
management institute in the world compulsorily trains its
students about it, teaching core principles and why it is
important to develop a record keeping habit not just in the
industry but personally as well. When seen from a personal
point of view too, financial accounting can lend much support
to one's own finances. In our modern times, we see a number
of apps and software on mobiles and computers specifically
intended to maintain a record of our personal record. In its
conceptual entirety, maintaining personal finances itself
constitutes one of the practical forms of financial accounting.
In today's world, no business can exist without a set of
accounting system. A start-up with just four employees too
needs an accountant for the manager to be in touch with the
situation of his/her organisation. With finances and the economy
becoming so dynamic as seen never before, it is thus an
essential part on understanding accounting practices and why
they constitute an important part of business management.
However, accounting theory is no one-page study; it requires
much skills and know-how about all its concepts and definitions
for anyone to be called as a qualified accountant. In this book,
a brief explanation of accounting concepts is concerned, with
special emphasis on its history and key concepts. Since
accounting is more than just merely forming a table with
figures, a detailed explanation of all the basic and key terms
becomes vital. Through examples, an appropriate understanding
of accounting theory becomes even clearer for the amateurs
and those who would want to know more about financial
accounting without going much into technical details. Finally,
conclusion remarks will briefly outline the necessity of
maintaining financial records and how accounting theory is yet
another still-evolving concept. Since financial accounting
encompasses almost everything related to business management,
its importance in the corporate world as well as our personal
lives will also be outlined through practical examples and theory.
