Travel Luxembourg: The Many Languages

One thing that really surprised me in Luxembourg, and to which I have referred before, were the amount of languages spoken in such a small country.

I already knew the official languages were French, German and Luxembourgish, but I had so idea we would both see/hear those and many other languages all around. Portuguese, albeit not an official language, could also be heard at every corner, which I found fascinating.

And not only that, but their road signs were quite inconsistent – I would see most signs in French, although a lot of times they would be in German or another language I didn’t fully comprehend (which I am assuming was Luxembourgish), leaving me quite confused anywhere I went.

Thankfully, some people do speak English so by mixing different languages everywhere I went we seemed to understand each other.

I’ve always considered language to be a very important part of a country’s culture, so I was a little puzzled as to what language people were happier speaking, if everyone in the country speaks the three official languages, and whether they have the same national pride as other countries that only have one official language. Are they more prone to accepting outside influence due speaking all those different languages, or do borders still play a very important role in their lives?

These are all open questions I will have to address the next time I visit this gem!