Luxembourg
Fast facts
- Capital
- Luxembourg
- Official language
- Luxembourgish French German
- Currency
- Euro (€)
- Time zone
- CET
- Drives on
- right
- Calling code
- 352
Facts from Wikipedia’s “Luxembourg” page (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Luxembourg (officially called the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Groussherzogtum Lëtzebuerg, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, Großherzogtum Luxemburg) is a landlocked country in Western Europe.
It is a small country by land area. In 2025, its population was 681,973, making it one of Europe’s most densely populated countries.
It was one of the first countries in the European Union. It is also a member of the Benelux. The countries next to Luxembourg are Belgium, Germany, and France. The main language is Luxembourgish but French and German is also spoken there.
History
In 963, Luxembourg was founded. Sigefroid, Count of Ardennes, came to own the ruins of an old Roman fort called “Castellum Lucilinburhuc” (“Little Castle”) from the monks of the Abbey of St. Maximin in Trier. In 1354, the emperor Charles IV made Luxembourg a duchy. In 1443, Luxembourg was captured by Philip of Burgundy.
In, 1795, after the French revolution Luxembourg was taken over by France. It became a département of France. In 1815, Luxembourg became a grand duchy. It was ruled by the king of the Netherlands. From 1815 to 1866, Luxembourg became a member of the German Confederation. In 1890, after the death of William III, Luxembourg passed to the House of Nassau-Weilburg.
Between 1914 to 1918, Luxembourg was conquered by Germany during World War I. In 1940, the Germans returned during World War II, and in 1942 Luxembourg became part of the Third Reich. In 1944, Luxembourg became independent in September because the United States Army arrived. In 1945, Luxembourg joined the United Nations.
In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the first six members of the European Economic Community. In 2020, Luxembourg became the first country in the world to make all public transport free to use.
Politics
Luxembourg is a parliamentary democracy lead by a constitutional monarch. Under the constitution of 1868, executive power is in the hands of the Governor and the cabinet, which consists of several other ministers.
Climate
Luxembourg has a continental climate.
The highest temperature ever recorded in Luxembourg was 40.8 °C (105 °F), on 25 July 2019 in Steinsel.
The lowest temperature ever recorded in Luxembourg was -24.6 °C (-12.3 °F) on 2 February 1956 in Wiltz.
Districts, cantons, and communes
Luxembourg is divided into twelve cantons. These twelve cantons are divided into 102 communes (towns or cities), which have local governments.
Districts
Until 2015, Luxembourg’s cantons were sorted into three districts. These are not to be confused with the electoral districts of Luxembourg, which are used to elect members of the parliament.
The districts were:
- Diekirch
- Grevenmacher
- Luxembourg
Written for younger readers
Luxembourg, in simpler words
This version comes from Wikijunior, a set of books written for children aged 8 to 11. It is shorter and uses plainer language than the article above.
From Wikijunior: Europe
Luxembourg is a small country in western Europe. It shares borders with Germany, France and Belgium. The capital city is also called Luxembourg. The country has been a member of the European Union since the organization was founded in 1957. It uses the Euro as its currency. Its population is just over half a million people but it is an important financial centre.
Luxembourg has a long history but its independence dates from 1839. Present-day parts of Belgium were part of Luxembourg in the past but became Belgian after the 1830s Belgian Revolution. Luxembourg has always tried to remain a neutral country but it was occupied in both World War I and World War II by Germany. In 1957 Luxembourg became a founding member of the organization which is today known as the European Union.
The country is only 2,586 square kilometres which makes it one of the smallest countries in the world. The geography of the country is dominated by low hills and mountains. The highest mountain is Kneiff at 560 metres.
The vast majority of the population live in the southern part of the country in the area of the capital. Northern areas are sparsely populated and largely covered by forests and hills. Luxembourg is considered to be one of the cleanest and least-polluted countries in the world (4th out of 132 countries in some studies).
People from Luxembourg are known as Luxembourgers and natives are a mixture of German, French and Celtic origins. There are large numbers of people in the country with Belgian, Italian, Bosnian and Serbian backgrounds.
The languages of the country are Luxembourgish, German, and French (mostly spoken by foreign commuters). There are large numbers of Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Christians, Jews and Muslims in Luxembourg. Luxembourg is the richest country in the world (when measured per population). The average Luxembourger earns about $90,000 per year.
Food and drink in the country are influenced by the location so typically German food. However, in recent years there has been a lot of immigration from Italy, Spain and even former Yugoslavia, so the cuisine can be mixed.
The rural areas near the German border are popular with German tourists and the capital city, Luxembourg, is a popular weekend-break destination and also an important place for business meetings. Almost 1 million people visit Luxembourg for tourism every year.
Other popular sites include the City of Luxembourg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site; Vianden, a very picturesque town with an 11th century castle and Echternach which is 1300 years old and the oldest town in Luxembourg.
Where this page comes from
The article above is adapted from “Luxembourg” on Simple English Wikipedia, by its contributors. We removed reference markers, navigation boxes and tables, expanded measurement templates into readable numbers, and kept the prose otherwise intact. The simpler version is adapted from Wikijunior on Wikibooks.
Both sources are published under CC BY-SA 4.0, so this page is published under the same licence. You may share and adapt it, including commercially, as long as you credit the original and keep the same licence.
Worksheets, answer keys and printable layouts elsewhere on K5Print are our own work and are not covered by this licence.