Lauds morning prayer

Lauds is a divine office that takes place in the early morning hours. In the ordinary form of the Roman Rite Liturgy of the Hours, as celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church, it is one of the two major hours.

The word lutes (that is, praises) explains the particular character of this Office whose purpose is to praise God. Obviously, all canonical hours have the same objective, however, it can be affirmed that Ludes has this characteristic par excellence. Surely the name is derived from the last three Psalms of the office (148, 149, 150), in all of which the word laudate is repeated frequently and to such an extent that originally the word laudes did not indicate the total office, as it does currently, but only the end, that is, these three Psalms with the conclusion. 

Saint Benedict also uses this term to designate the last three Psalms. In the 5th and 6th centuries the trade of lutes was called Matutinum, which has now become the special name of another trade, the night trade or vigils, a term that is no longer used (see Matins). Gradually, the lute title was applied to the entire trade and replaced the name matins. However, the ancient authors of the fourth to sixth or seventh centuries used the names Matutinum, Laudes matutinae, or Matutini hymni to designate the office of dawn or dawn, and the office of matins retains the name of vigils. Perhaps the reason for this confusion of names is because originally matins and lutes formed a single trade, and the night trade ended at dawn.