book of original entry

plural books of original entry

1. A record book in which all transactions (or all of a certain class) of a business are recorded and from entries are made in accounting records such as the general ledger or subsidiary ledgers.

   Auxiliary Books contain detailed information supporting the record in a book of original entry.

   1919, James W. Baker, 20th Century Bookkeeping and Accounting, 10th edition, page 30

   5 more examples

   When a transaction has been written down at length in a book of original entry, there is generally no occasion to make another minute of the same transaction before it is posted.

   1850, P[atrick] MacGregor, A Practical Treatise on Book-keeping, page 179

   Each book of Original Entry is usually paged off by itself; and, if we have several original books, the phraseology before each item in the Ledger, will be sufficient to determine the kind of original book

   1852, Joseph Howard Palmer, A Treatise on Practical Book-keeping and Business Transactions, page 36

   WHEN a Day Book is kept it is called the Book of original Entry and will always be referred to in any case of doubt or dispute about the correctness of any entry upon the Ledger.

   1852, Peter Duff, Duff's North American Accountant, page 25

   It being the book of original entry, no erasures are allowable; for with these, in a case of litigation, it would not be admitted into court as evidence

   1866, Eastman National Business College (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.), The Student's Guide Through the Theoretical Department of Eastman National Business College, page 9

   The Notes Receivable Register adopted here serves both as a book of original entry and as a subsidiary notes receivable ledger.

   1951, Arthur Wellington Holmes, Francis E. Moore, Books of original entry, page 492

   Synonyms: book of prime entry, journal, daybook, blotter