What is the definition and explanation of accounting cycle?

Accounting Cycle, also known as “accounting process” or “Book-keeping Process” is the start-to-end process to be followed sequentially, or at times, simultaneously for recording the financial and accounting events occurring in any organization.

In earlier times, these steps were followed manually and sequentially by an accountant. But these days, many softwares, like Tally, SAP, ERP, etc complete all the steps involved in accounting process simultaneously, and the user is just required to initiate the process by providing the relevant financial data.