An entry that increases the balance of an A or E account or reduces the balance of an L, P or I account is known as a debit. An entry that reduces the balance of an A or E account or increases the balance of an L, P or I account is referred to as a credit. Traditionally hand-written books were divided into two columns. Debits were entered into the left-hand column and credits into the right. In fact the traditional definition of a debit is an entry on the left-hand side of an account. Conversely a credit was defined as an entry on the right-hand side of an account. In order for the ledger to remain in balance the total debits must equal the total credits.