GERMAN AND FRENCH WRITERS: HISTORICAL SKETCH FOR FUTURE ACCOUNTING STANDARDS IN AFRICA

The Anglo-Saxons remained a minority for a long time. Now they have the principal role. They guide the world with their conceptual framework and their accounting standards. Two countries have exemplary old glory, and we wanted to recall some features of the history of their accountants on the threshold of the Changing era of international standards. From the middle Ages to the 17th century, the major European nations had very similar accounting systems. Then, differences appeared. This trend continued during the 19th century, in particular for nations that had close cultural and commercial ties, Germany and France. Europeans discussed the personalistic and materialistic theories, the proprietary theory, the entity theory and many others. In the 20th century, every country had specific concerns: the Germans had to solve problems of inflation and standardization, and the French, with their rationalistic tradition tried to introduce a 'scientific' approach to accountancy. Then, the even more influential German scholars, like Schmalenbach, Fritz Schmidt and others, combined their practical business sense and their systematic aptitude in developing a variety of Bilanztheorien, while at the same time, the French were occupied with standardization and chart of accounts. Finally, the Europeans saw the opportunities offered by internationally valid standards, continuing their movement towards reunification.