Basil Selig Yamey

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(4 May 1919 – 9 November 2020) was a South African economist and expert in the

history of accounting The history of accounting or accountancy can be traced to ancient civilizations.Keith, Robson. 1992. “Accounting Numbers as ‘inscription’: Action at a Distance and the Development of Accounting.” ''Accounting, Organizations and Society'' ...

Career

He was born in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

in May 1919, and educated at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

. For many years he was a professor at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

. He was a part-time member of the

Monopolies and Mergers Commission The Competition Commission was a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom. It was a competition regulator unde ...

from 1966 to 1978, and author of many books and articles, including one on the economics of underdeveloped countries co-authored with Peter Thomas Bauer. Yamey's interest in rational economic decision-making led him to study historical accounting records. Yamey rejected the claim by

Werner Sombart Werner Sombart (; ; 19 January 1863 – 18 May 1941) was a German economist and sociologist, the head of the "Youngest Historical School" and one of the leading Continental European social scientists during the first quarter of the 20th century. ...

that the

double-entry bookkeeping system Double-entry bookkeeping, also known as double-entry accounting, is a method of bookkeeping that relies on a two-sided accounting entry to maintain financial information. Every entry to an account requires a corresponding and opposite entry to ...

was a pre-condition, or at least an important stimulating factor, for the emergence of modern

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, priva ...

. Yamey combined his interest in Accounting History with his love of art (he was a trustee of the National Gallery, London from 1974 to 1981 and of the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

, London from 1978 to 1981) in his book ''Art & Accounting'', a richly-illustrated survey of paintings portraying commercial scenes and business-people. He died in November 2020 at the age of 101.A trip down memory lane
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Selected bibliography

Journal articles

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Books

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References

1919 births 2020 deaths Academics of the London School of Economics 20th-century South African economists South African academics South African Jews Jewish scientists Fellows of the British Academy University of Cape Town alumni Honorary Fellows of the London School of Economics South African Commanders of the Order of the British Empire South African centenarians Men centenarians {{SouthAfrica-academic-bio-stub