Spain

The origins of financial reporting in the Iberian Peninsula can be traced back to the thirteenth century, when evidences of manorial accounting but also commercial accounting can be found. The subsequent evolution of financial reporting is influenced by the Castilian hegemony in the 16th century, not only in the Peninsula, but in a substantial part of the world as well. The configuration of the Castilian state shaped the evolution of accounting since the 15th century, with the subsequent decline in the 17th century and the partial recovery in the 18th century. The first section of this chapter is devoted to the description of those antecedents, from the low middle age to the 18th century.In terms of accounting history, the 19th century starts in Spain with a low level of accounting practice but increasingly the commercial regulation allowed the creation of the large limited companies, especially in the financial, railways and mining sectors. However, financial reporting by Spanish companies lagged behind the development of other countries and its evolution well into the twentieth century was the outcome of the influence of foreign investors.The third period considered starts in the middle of the 20th century, in a period characterised by the development of financial markets and the internationalisation of the Spanish economy. During this period, the evolution of accounting is Spain is explained by the need to catch up with the norms and rules that were found overseas