Etymologically

matutinus

Etymology and origin of the Latin word matutinus

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
Accius
Ultimate origin
Latin (Mātūta)

Pronunciation

  • IPA (Classical): [maː.tuːˈtiː.nʊs][1]
  • IPA (Ecclesiastical): [ma.tuˈtiː.nus][1]

Forms

mātūtīnus (feminine mātūtīna, neuter mātūtīnum); first/second-declension adjective[1]

Etymology

It is from Mātūta, the goddess of dawn, with the suffix -īnus; it is related to māne “in the morning”.[2][1][3] De Vaan traces ⟨māne⟩ to Proto-Indo-European *meh₂-no- (“good”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The OLD's earliest citation is from Accius, of the early morning.[2] Köbler dates Accius 170–c. 90 BC.[5]

Semantic evolution

It meant of the early morning, morning, as in Cicero and Horace, and in the land surveyors eastern.[2][6]

In the Church it meant of the morning office; as a noun, mātūtīnum or mātūtīnae were matins, morning lauds, and a vigil.[7][8] Late Latin mātūtīnae (vigiliae) gave Old French matines and English matins in the mid-13th century, and mātūtīnum became French matin and Italian mattino “morning”.[9][1]

Timeline

  • 170–c. 90 BC – Accius uses it.[2][5]
  • 81–43 BC – Cicero uses it.[6][5]
  • mid-13th century – English matins is recorded.[9]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of the early morning, matutinal.[2]
  2. Eastern.[2]

Noun

  1. (Ecclesiastical Latin) (mātūtīnae, mātūtīnum) Matins.[7]

Word family

  • mātūtīnum
  • mātūtīnē
  • mātūtīnō

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  5. ^ a b c Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  6. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
  7. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
  8. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson
  9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
Cite this entry

“Matutinus.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/la/matutinus. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·