aubade

Definition

A poem or song evoking or greeting the dawn or early morning.

Etymology

PIE word *albʰós Borrowed from French aubade, from Old French albade, from Old Spanish albada (“musical or poetic composition to be performed in the morning”), from alba (“dawn”), from Vulgar Latin *alba (“dawn; sunrise”), from Latin albus (“bright, clear; white”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *albʰós (“white”).

Example Sentences

• "And there he lingered till the crowing cock, / The Alectryon of the farmyard and the flock, / Sang his aubade with lusty voice and clear, / To tell the sleeping world that dawn was near."
• "Alladad Khan woke to the far crying of kampong cocks in the dark. That noise had been the farmyard aubade in the Punjab in his dream."