Language Research

Letzeburgesh is a colloquial language spoken throughout Luxembourg. It first appeared in the year 963 when Luxembourg was mentioned in documents as Lutzelburg. All Luxembourgers from every stratum of society speak their own dialect, which they consider to be a type of standard language, in all areas of their private life and most areas of public life. Where there is greater intellectual content, and in technology and administration, German and French are also used. This "bilingualism" is a centuries-old tradition. From the 12th century onwards, the county of Luxembourg had a German-speaking sector (Quartier allemand) and a Walloon sector (Quartier wallon). French became the official national language, however, when the Burgundians (1443-1477) purchased the land. This situation continued through the centuries when Luxembourg was in the hands of the Hapsburgs (1477-1684), the French (1684-1697), the Spanish (1701-1704) and the Austrians (1714-1719). After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Luxembourg became, at least in theory, an independent state. After the Belgian revolution in 1839, Luxembourg was divided into two parts. The Quartier wallon and the area around Arlon fell to Belgium, while the Quartier allemand achieved political independence for the first time. In 1939, celebrations were held for the centenary of the London Agreement, in which a deliberate attempt was made to create a sense of national identity in Luxembourg.

Luxembourg acquired, mainly in the wake of the Second World War, the status of an officially codified language and is, thus, considered to be an essential element in the linguistic and cultural self-perception of the people of Luxembourg today.

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