Matutin

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or occurring in the early morning hours before dawn; describing a habit or practice done at daybreak; connected to a time period just before sunrise
2. Pertaining to the early part of the day, particularly the hours preceding sunrise; characterizing events or routines that take place at first light; associated with the morning twilight
3. Concerning the dawn or very early hours of the morning; indicating activities or occurrences happening at the start of the day; linked to the time just before the sun rises

Etymology: "Matutin" comes from Latin "matutinus," meaning "of the morning," which was itself derived from "Matuta," the Roman goddess of dawn and early morning. Her name is connected to the adjective "matutinus," and the Romans used it for anything belonging to the early part of the day. The goddess was associated with the morning light and with newborns, so the same root gave rise to the sense of beginnings as well as the hour itself. In English, "matutinal" is the more common adjective for this sense, and "matutin" appears as a rarer variant that entered the language through the same Latin source, mostly in learned and literary writing. It has stayed a bookish word, used when a writer wants a classical flavour for something related to morning.

Synonyms: matutinal, morning, early

Antonyms: nocturnal, evening, night