A Research of The Assumption That Accounting Is a Mathematical Sub-Discipline According to the Lesson Distributions in Ottoman Idadis (1890-1915)
Accounting has been seen in a close relationship with mathematics for a long time until it started as the art of bookkeeping and became an independent scientific discipline. In fact, this relationship was built on the assumption that accounting was more of a sub-discipline of mathematics. The follow-up of this relationship, which can be seen until the early twentieth century, is important for evaluating the scientific background and quality of accounting. Accordingly, this study examines accounting education in Ottoman schools chronologically, and also analyzes the most common secondary schools, the idadis, which are known to have offered accounting education. Historical examples of the acceptance of accounting as a sub-discipline of mathematics have been presented, and research covering the period 1890-1915 has been conducted in idadis to determine the extent to which accounting and mathematics education has been provided by the same teachers. In this context, the other lessons taught by the teachers who taught accounting in idadis have been identified through archival documents, and their numerical distribution has been made according to lesson types and groups. The findings of the study showed that teachers who taught accounting in idadis taught mathematics more than other lessons. In this respect, the study aims to contribute to the literature by supporting the historical relationship between accounting and mathematics through common educators. In the following studies, the analysis of alternative historical works on the combination of accounting and mathematics education, research in alternative educational institutions on the fact that accounting education was mostly given by mathematics educators in the relevant periods, and examples of joint majors can be discussed.
Osmanlı İdadilerindeki Ders Dağılımlarına Göre Muhasebenin Bir Matematiksel Alt Disiplin Olduğu Varsayımının Araştırılması (1890-1915)
Muhasebe, defter tutma sanatı olarak başlayıp bağımsız bir bilimsel nitelik kazandığı dönemlere kadar uzun süre matematikle yakın ilişkide görülmüştür. Hatta bu ilişki muhasebenin daha çok bir matematiksel alt disiplin olduğu varsayımı üzerinden kurgulanmıştır. Yirminci yüzyıl başlarına kadar görülebilen bu ilişkinin takibi muhasebenin bilimsel birikimi ve niteliğini değerlendirmek için önemlidir. Bu doğrultuda çalışmada Osmanlı okullarında muhasebe eğitimi kronolojik olarak ele alınmış, ilgili okullar arasında ortaöğretim seviyesinde en yaygın olan ve bünyesinde muhasebe eğitimi verildiği bilinen idadiler ayrıca incelenmiştir. Muhasebenin bir matematiksel alt disiplin olarak kabul edildiğine dair tarihi örnekler sunulmuş, muhasebe ve matematik eğitiminin ne ölçüde aynı öğretmenler tarafından verildiğinin tespit edilmesi için idadilerde 1890-1915 dönemini kapsayan bir araştırma yapılmıştır. Bu kapsamda idadilerde muhasebe dersi veren öğretmenlerin bu ders dışında anlattıkları diğer dersler arşiv belgeleri üzerinden belirlenerek, ders türü ve ders gruplarına göre sayısal dağılımları yapılmıştır. Araştırmanın bulguları idadilerde muhasebe dersini anlatan öğretmenlerin diğer derslere oranla matematik derslerini daha fazla yürüttüklerini göstermiştir. Bu yönüyle çalışma muhasebenin matematikle olan tarihsel ilişkisini ortak eğitimciler üzerinden destekleyerek literatüre katkı sağlamayı hedeflemiştir. Takip eden çalışmalarda, muhasebe ve matematik eğitimlerinin bir arada verilmesine yönelik alternatif tarihi eserlerin tahlili, ilgili dönemlerde muhasebe eğitiminin ekseriyetle matematik eğitimcileri tarafından verildiğine dair alternatif eğitim kurumlarında araştırmalar ve ortak branşlaşmaya dair örnekler ele alınabilir.
Since the earliest periods, the strongest relationship of accounting has been established with mathematics and even seen as a sub-discipline of mathematics. Accounting education was evaluated together with mathematics and presented together in some educational works. The effect of this association, which can be found in the 14th−15th centuries, can be traced until the early twentieth century.
In the nineteenth century, especially in the last quarter of the Ottoman Empire, translated and subsequently copyrighted books of accounting were organized with a modern understanding, included in the curriculum of almost every educational institution, and played an important role in the development of commercial life. The knowledge accumulation of this period has shaped today's understanding of accounting with its commercial, industrial and academic aspects. In this respect, it is important to examine the scientific history of accounting and to develop different approaches. The relationship between accounting and mathematics, its being considered as a sub-discipline of mathematics and its effect on accounting knowledge, is an important but insufficiently addressed issue in terms of the history of accounting science. In the accounting history literature, there are a limited number of studies that draw attention to the periods when accounting was seen as a sub-discipline of mathematics and this presupposition. Current studies that examine the association of accounting and mathematics by pointing to the historical relationship have generally addressed the issue through books and authors.
This study examines Turkish educational books from 1869 to 1913 that highlight the relationship between accounting and mathematics, a period when the pioneering books of modern accounting were published in our country. When evaluated together with foreign examples, it should be expected that this relationship, which has historical roots in the distant past, has reflections on the Turkish education system. It can be assumed that accounting and mathematics lessons were taught by the same people, that there was a transitivity between the lessons, and that the same people taught these lessons together or alternately during their tenure. As a matter of fact, data on this relationship between accounting and mathematics education can be found in idadis, which were the most widespread and the longest-schooling institutions among the Ottoman schools in the relevant period. In this respect, the claim of the research conducted within the scope of this study is that since accounting is seen as a sub-discipline of mathematics, accounting lesson teachers in idadis should be teachers who also teach mathematics lessons. Within the scope of the study, the other lessons taught by the teachers in charge of accounting lessons in the idadis have been determined and these lessons have been analyzed from different perspectives according to their types and groups, and the coexistence of accounting and mathematics in the relevant period has been evaluated.
According to the findings of the study, ninty different accounting teachers in forty five different idadis taught thirty three different lessons other than accounting lessons a total of 175 times in the period 1890-1915. The highest number of teachers has been observed in Gümülcine, Adana, Erzurum, Karasihar-ı Sahip, Konya, Mamuret-ül Aziz and Thessaloniki idadis, while the highest number of lectures has been observed in Gümülcine, Erzurum, Hama and Mamuret-ül Aziz idadis.
According to the results of the study, it was found that accounting teachers mostly taught mathematics (including geometry and trigonometry) lessons other than this lesson. This finding points to the reflection of the assumption that accounting was a sub-discipline of mathematics in the idadis during the relevant periods, as observed in various historical accounting books and approaches. In addition to mathematics, accounting teachers respectively taught Turkish, foreign languages, geography and science, spelling/correspondence, religious studies and agriculture. In this respect, the study aims to contribute to the literature by supporting the historical relationship between accounting and mathematics through teachers who taught both lessons.
