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Wednesday 16 Aug 2017: Full Page Spread

Interview. I spoke with reporter Lisa Urbé at the national newspaper (Luxemburger Wort, also Luxembourg Times) in July 2017. Ms. Urbé telephoned me from the newspaper's Gasperich/St. Paul offices at my home in San Diego, California. Originally scheduled for thirty minutes, it was a very pleasurable conversation that ran to sixty minutes, and even then, we could not get all the questions asked nor answers delivered. This link opens a separate window. Large file (over 500 kb). Click anywhere on that page to go back.

LANGUAGES. Official and/or common languages in Luxembourg are traditionally French, German, and Luxemburgish (Luxembourgeois). In recent generations, most people have become fluent in English. Also, over 25% of the population are of Portuguese origin, so that language is quite common. That's why it is no surprise that you'd be just as likely to see the interview in French or in German or even English. The typical school child in this nation learns Luxemburgish (Luxembourgeois) as their first language. It is best described as another Western Germanic language like English, Dutch, or Flemish. In first grade, the student begins learning German. In the second grade, the student begins learning French. Before leaving grammar school, the student has begun learning their fourth language, namely English. Portuguese is today also spoken by a large minority, who are of Portuguese or Brazilian origin.

I like to say that Luxembourg is the northernmost of Europe's southern countries, and the southernmost of Europe's northern countries. It is part of the BENELUX (Low Countries) and has an incredibly complex history dating back thousands of years. In Holocene times it was part of the Celtic realms, later invaded by Germanic tribes, but conquered by Rome. The Western Roman capital, Augusta Treverorum, is a short drive east of Luxembourg City (which did not exist then, but was founded in 963 CE). Following the death of Emperor Charlemagne in 814, the region later to include Luxembourg became part of the domain of Lotharingia as the Carolingian empire was divided among Charlemagne's three sons. Later in the European Middle Ages, we find the House of Luxembourg (no direct relation to today's Grand-Ducal family) dominating Europe for nearly a century as Holy Roman Emperors (ruling primarily out of Prague in Bohemia). For a time, Luxemboug was part of the Spanish empire, and there are still so-called Spanish Turrets along some walls in the Old City. For more info, take a look at Wikipedia.

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