Luxembourgish language
Luxembourgish (also Luxemburgish, Luxembourgian, Letzebu(e)rgesch; Luxembourgish: Lëtzebuergesch ) is a West Germanic language that is spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 400,000 people speak Luxembourgish worldwide.
As a standard form of the Moselle Franconian language, Luxembourgish has similarities with other varieties of High German and the wider group of West Germanic languages. The status of Luxembourgish as an official language in Luxembourg and the existence there of a regulatory body have removed Luxembourgish, at least in part, from the domain of Standard German, its traditional Dachsprache.
Luxembourgish was considered a German dialect like many others until about World War II but then it underwent ausbau, that is it created its own standard form in vocabulary, grammar and spelling and therefore is seen today as an independent language, an ausbau language.
Due to the fact that Luxembourgish has a maximum of some 285,000 native speakers, resources in the language like books, newspapers, magazines, television, internet etc. are limited. Since most Luxembourgers also speak Standard German and French there is strong competition with these two which both have very large language resources and therefore the use of Luxembourgish up to now remains quite limited.
As a standard form of the Moselle Franconian language, Luxembourgish has similarities with other varieties of High German and the wider group of West Germanic languages. The status of Luxembourgish as an official language in Luxembourg and the existence there of a regulatory body have removed Luxembourgish, at least in part, from the domain of Standard German, its traditional Dachsprache.
Luxembourgish was considered a German dialect like many others until about World War II but then it underwent ausbau, that is it created its own standard form in vocabulary, grammar and spelling and therefore is seen today as an independent language, an ausbau language.
Due to the fact that Luxembourgish has a maximum of some 285,000 native speakers, resources in the language like books, newspapers, magazines, television, internet etc. are limited. Since most Luxembourgers also speak Standard German and French there is strong competition with these two which both have very large language resources and therefore the use of Luxembourgish up to now remains quite limited.
Country
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Luxembourg
With an area of 2,586 km2, Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in Europe, and the smallest not considered a microstate. In 2022, it had a population of 645,397, which makes it one of the least-populated countries in Europe, albeit with the highest population growth rate; foreigners account for nearly half the population. Luxembourg is a representative democracy headed by a constitutional monarch, Grand Duke Henri, making it the world's only remaining sovereign grand duchy.