By Russell Hague Study tipsThe dark side of double-entry bookkeeping2 Nov 2015 A student recently asked me a question that really got me thinking.Not an unusual occurrence, but this particular question led me unsuspectingly towards the dark side of the origins of accounting.The question at first seemed quite innocuous.Why are debits abbreviated ‘Dr’ when there is no ‘r’ in debit?Okay, if I don’t know the answer immediately I could apply my three rules of response here:Make it upKick it into the long grass and promise to respond next week when everybody has forgotten about it, orResearch the question and answer it comprehensively.Only joking of course, rule three applies in all circumstances as every teacher will tell you.A little research along those lines produced a reasonable theory for the ‘Dr’ abbreviation which is based on the way the words debit and credit derive from the Latin ‘debitur’ or ‘debere’ (to owe) and ‘creditor’ or ‘credere’ (to entrust).The English translation to Debit and Credit changed the form of the word but kept the abbreviation we still use today.So, where does the dark side come into all this?Well, my research led me to the question; why are debit entries always recorded on the left side of the ledger?Search engine results were so few and far between that I was considering the Rules of Response number two. However, perseverance prevailed and a theory emerged.In modern accounting, the debit is now considered a technical term referring to the left side of an accounting journal or ledger, but this was not always the case. To answer the question we need to drill down to their original use which was to record the debts of the trader or merchant.So, why choose the left hand side of the ledger to record debts?In the past, all Debts were considered a bad thing to have around. Traditionally the left side has always been associated with all things bad.Take left-handedness for example; its technical term is ‘sinistral’ which derives from Latin ‘sinister’ representing sin and the dark side.It seems reasonable that in the past, debts were naturally recorded on the left side or the ’bad’ side of the ledger.All based on superstition but if you ever find yourself posting debit entries in the middle of the night, just bear a thought for the dark side of double entry.Read more on double-entry bookkeeping;Understanding more about double-entry bookkeepingStudy tips: How manual bookkeeping can help you learn to use accounting softwareThe most confusing accounting terms explainedTo access your eLearning tools click the image below and login Russell Hague an AAT tutor at Sheffield City College and works as a Finance Manager for a small group of companie.