The AA Preamble was introduced in the June 1947 issue of the AA Grapevine magazine. It was written by the then editor, who borrowed much of the phrasing from the Foreword to the original edition of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous.
In those early years, the Grapevine had just begun to circulate among nonalcoholics, and the Preamble was intended primarily to describe for them what AA is and is not. It is still often used for public information purposes. As time passed, it began appearing in all Conference approved publications, and many AA Groups now use it to open meetings.