Luxembourgish is the official language of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg. The small country has been multilingual since its inception, and the Luxembourgish language has been spoken throughout its history. As a Moselle Franconian dialect, the language belongs to the West Germanic languages and is very similar to High German.
Experts claim that the Luxembourgish language originated in the Moselle River region in Rhineland. Thus, this native High German territory became the birthplace of the Luxembourgish language in the 8th century. However, it was heavily influenced by German and French throughout history.
The Luxembourgish language history starts in the lower valley of the Moselle, which once belonged to the Holy Roman Empire. The country of Luxembourg was established when Count Siegfried built the Lucilinburhuc castle. At the time people spoke High German, but the territory was soon divided by the French. The inhabitants then spoke Wallon, and German was spoken where Luxembourgish was spoken.
Since the Early Middle Ages, Luxemburg has been multilingual; French is reserved for administration and German is used for politics and the law. The French occupied the land in the 17th century and forbade the use of German, but people continued to use Luxembourgish. Luxemburg gained independence in 1839. Since 1912, the language has been taught in primary schools. Luxembourgish became the official language of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in 1984.
An English speaker may need 50 hours to learn Luxembourgish.
Most people in the Grand Duchy are multilingual because they use German, French, and Luxembourgish in their primary education. To learn the Luxembourgish language as an English speaker, you will need around 50 hours, but you can quickly learn a few common words and phrases. However, if you need content writing in Luxembourgish, you might need a professional to help you out!
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There are three genders in the Luxembourg language; male, female, and neuter. Moreover, there are three cases: nominative, accusative, and dative.
In statements, Luxembourgish follows a verb-second word order.
In Luxembourg, Luxembourgish is taught in preschool education whereas German is used in primary school and French is spoken in secondary school.
Luxembourgish is spoken alongside French and German in Luxembourg, creating a situation of "triglossia" where individuals switch between the three languages depending on the situation.
Luxembourgish has a unique grammar, with a relatively simple noun declension system and a complex verb conjugation system that includes irregular verbs and several tenses.
Luxembourgish is a Moselle Franconian variety of West Central German, which means it is most closely related to other West Central German dialects such as Ripuarian, Moselle Franconian, and Rhine Franconian. These dialects are spoken in areas of Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands that border Luxembourg.
Luxembourgish can be considered a difficult language to learn for non-native speakers due to the fact that Luxembourgish has a complex grammar with many irregularities, including a challenging verb conjugation system and a large number of prepositions.
The origins of the Luxembourgish language can be traced back to the Old High German spoken in the region during the early Middle Ages. Over time, this language evolved into what is now known as Luxembourgish, which developed as a distinct language in the late Middle Ages.