While mentioning Luxembourg yesterday, I was struck by its name: we usually associate the suffix -bourg/burg with towns and cities, and in American English, burg is used as an informal word for town. So why would a country (albeit a tiny one) have a name like a town? I decided to investigate…
The name Luxembourg comes from the Germanic words lutilla (little) and burg (fort or castle). Which makes sense, as the modern country of Luxembourg began with the acquisition of Lucilinburhuc (now Luxembourg Castle) by Siegfried, Count of Ardennes, in 963 AD. Around the castle, a town developed. Usually, the towns only grow so far as becoming a larger town or city, which is where -bourg/burg as the ending of the names of many towns and cities comes from. Luxembourg kept going though, and became a country. Or Grand Duchy, if you prefer. A duchy is a region controlled by a duke, and it therefore stands to reason that a grand duchy is ruled by a grand duke, which is a monarchic title below emperor and king, and not to be confused with your average common-as-muck duke. Henri has been Grand Duke of Luxembourg since 2000, and is the only remaining Grand duke in the world. Good for you, Henri!
I could give you a potted history of the country, but for any small Continental European country like Luxembourg it’s insanely complicated. Suffice it to say it shares many elements of the cultures of the countries that it borders (Belgium, France, and Germany); has high income levels and a successful economy; was a founding member of the European Union; largely due to its history of trying to maintain peace between France and Germany (as it’s stuck in the middle); and I didn’t say anything about Russian Mafia money, did you?
So that’s a suitably small tale of a small country. Finally, I should make it clear that by Luxembourg, I’m referring to the Grand Duchy, not the city, or the castle, or the district, or the canton, or the county, or the constituency, or the Belgian province, or the three American cities (spelled Luxemburg). Seriously, look at Wikipedia’s disambiguation page!
Man, Europe is a complicate place…
English-Language Thoughts 
Luksemburg in my country
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Why shouldn’t Europe be complicated? Life is complicated and a lot of that happens there. How is that for ambiguation? ~~dru~~
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That’s pretty good! I actually love the complexity of Europe. We don’t always understand each other, but we’re like a big dysfunctional family.
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It is one of those countries that we just never hear much about… maybe I should start paying more attention 🙂
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It doesn’t do much to gain attention, except in Europe where it’s best known for its secretive banking system!
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Ahhh well, that would explain it! Truth be told, I was only aware of the place because my parents had passed through there several years ago while on vacation. Here in the U.S. where many of us have a Euro heritage, I have never met one person who claims they are Luxenbourgian. (Is that even a word?)
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They’re Luxembourgers actually! Which sounds like something you’d get from a hipster food truck. I’m not aware I’ve met one, but I am quite close to them at the moment, in Liege in Belgium, so I might pop over the border for a visit!
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Yes then you could prove they actually
exist! It is strange, really, because I live in Chicago — a multi-ethnic city. In my lifetime I have met people who are either from, or claim a heritage of, every country in Europe, except Luxembourg. Hipster food truck LOL!
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Maybe they don’t feel there are any great Luxembourgish achievements. Or that most people will respond with “where!?”
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Nah that is not it… Nobody here cares anything about achievements, nor obscurity. They just care they can boast their Euro bloodlines. (Myself included in this arrogant group.) Now I am curious. Keep us posted if you ever cross this mysterious Luxembourg border!! 🙂
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I spent part of my childhood living in Germany and I remember (fondly!) listening to the very cool music being played on “Luxembourg Radio”, thank you for this!
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Radio Luxembourg used to be really popular in Ireland and the UK, especially in the 60s when laws prohibited the playing of a lot of American pop, so it was like a precursor to pirate radio!
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Hey, thank you so much for correct way of saying Radio Luxembourg, the music I remember listening to was very cool British sounds!
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Sorry, I didn’t mean to correct you, hadn’t noticed it we’d written it differently! Luxembourg Radio would make more sense: I think we called it Radio Luxembourg to make it sound more “continental” and exotic!
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Not to worry, it brought back some great memories!
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[…] in Montenegro at the time (thank you, whoever you are!). In many ways, Montenegro is similar to Luxembourg: a small country with a complex history and an interesting […]
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