EXORDIUM
exordium
(noun) (rhetoric) the introductory section of an oration or discourse
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
exordium (plural exordiums or exordia)
(formal) A beginning.
The introduction to an essay or discourse.
Source: Wiktionary
Ex*or"di*um, n.; pl. E. Exordiums, L. Exordia . Etym: [L. fr.
exordiri to begin a web, lay a warp, begin; ex out + ordiri to begin
a web, begin; akin to E. order. See Order.]
Definition: A beginning; an introduction; especially, the introductory part
of a discourse or written composition, which prepares the audience
for the main subject; the opening part of an oration. "The exordium
of repentance." Jer. Taylor. "Long prefaces and exordiums. " Addison.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition