All 25 Sales & Purchase Ledgers questions
More in Sales & Purchase Ledgers
What is the purchases ledger? What is the difference between the sales ledger and the sales account? What is a debtor and a creditor? What is a statement of account sent to customers? What documents update the sales and purchases ledgers? What is accounts receivable and accounts payable? What is a credit customer versus a cash customer? What is a purchase invoice checked against before posting? How is a customer's account in the sales ledger written up? How is a supplier's account in the purchases ledger written up?
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Why are the sales and purchases ledgers called memorandum (subsidiary) ledgers?

Beginner

Answer

They are memorandum because they hold the detail of individual customer/supplier balances but are not themselves part of the double-entry system—the double entry is captured in the control accounts in the nominal ledger. The subsidiary ledgers provide the who-owes-what breakdown supporting the single control-account total.
Real-world example The sales ledger lists each debtor, but the double entry sits in the receivables control account.

Common follow-ups: Where does the double entry actually sit? | What do subsidiary ledgers provide?

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All 25 Sales & Purchase Ledgers questions