The first version of the language BASIC, acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code, was produced in 1964 at the Dartmouth College in the USA. This version of the language was oriented towards interactive use. Subsequently, a number of implementations of the language were prepared, that differed in part from the original one.

In 1974, the ECMA General Assembly recognized the need for a standardized version of the language, and in September 1974 the first meeting of the ECMA Committee TC 21, BASIC, took place. In January 1974, a corresponding committee, X3J2, had been founded in the USA.

Through a strict co-operation it was possible to maintain full compatibility between the ANSI and ECMA draft standards. The ANSI one was distributed for public comments in January 1976 , and a number of comments were presented by ECMA. A final version of the ECMA Standard was prepared at the meeting of June 1977 and adopted by the General Assembly of ECMA on Dec. 14, 1977 as Standard ECMA-55,