The Meaning of kessan [決算] In Japanese

決算
けっさん
Romaji: kessan N3

What does 決算 mean?

Translation and Meaning

settlement of accounts, financial closing, fiscal year-end

Definition

決算 refers to the formal closing of a fiscal period and the production of financial statements. It is the process by which a company finalizes its books for a defined period and reports earnings, assets, liabilities, and equity to stakeholders.

Type

noun (名詞)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • the act of closing and reporting the financial results for a period
  • the set of financial statements produced at period end, such as the balance sheet and income statement
  • the formal process used for tax filings and regulatory disclosures

Etymology

Phonetic evolution: 決 (けつ, けっ) and 算 (さん) supply the on’yomi readings; the compound combines these to yield けっさん (kessan), the standard pronunciation in modern Japanese. This reflects Sino-Japanese origin rather than native Japanese words.

Origin

Meiji era modernization brought Western accounting practices to Japan, and 決算 emerged as the standard term for closing books in Japanese finance and commerce.

Composition

  • 決: to decide or settle; the water radical on the left and the right component 夬 conveys a decisive act
  • 算: calculation or counting; the bamboo radical on the left signals calculation in traditional Chinese methods

Usage

Used in formal business, finance, and government contexts to describe the period-end close and reporting of financial results; common in annual reports, financial statements, tax filings, audits, and regulatory disclosures; typically used with formal verbs such as 行う or 行われる; not used in casual conversation.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: think of a boardroom seal stamping after tallying numbers; 決 means decide to close, 算 means count, so together they denote sealing the accounts at period end.

Variations

  • 財務報告 (zaimu hokoku) — financial report
  • 決算書 (kessansho) — financial statements
  • 決算短信 (kessan danshin) — earnings release
  • 決算月 (kessan getsu) — closing month

Example Phrases

  • 決算の資料を整理して、上司に提出した。
    Kessan no shiryō o seiri shite, jōshi ni teishutsu shita.
    I organized the year-end financial documents and submitted them to my boss.
    Lista:
    • 決算 (kessan) – year-end closing
    • の (no) – of / possessive
    • 資料 (shiryō) – documents
    • を (o) – object marker
    • 整理 (seiri) – organize
    • して (shite) – te-form of suru
    • 上司 (jōshi) – boss
    • に (ni) – to
    • 提出 (teishutsu) – submission
    • した (shita) – did
    「決算」 means year-end closing; here it functions as a noun modifying 資料.
決算