Interesting facts about Luxembourg

luxembourg flag

Luxembourg is a tiny country located in the Western Europe.

Luxembourg official name is the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Luxembourg borders Belgium to the west and north, France to the south, and Germany to the east.

Luxembourg have three official languages: French, German, and Luxembourgish.

German is the first language which is taught in schools of Luxembourg and is also used by the Church and media. However, all the businesses and official dealings are done in French.

The country is spread over the area of 2,586 square kilometers (998 square miles).

As of 1 January 2016, the population of Luxembourg was estimated to be 555,684 people.

The city of Luxembourg is the capital of the country of Luxembourg.Built amid deep gorges cut by the Alzette and Pétrusse rivers, it’s famed for its ruins of medieval fortifications.

luxembourg city

Luxembourg is the world’s only Grand Duchy. This means that it is a representative monarchy with a Grand Duke as head of country. The ruler is Grand Duke Henri.

Luxembourg is a founding member of many international and European organizations including the European Union, NATO, the United Nations, Benelux and the Western European Union.

It is the least populated country amongst all the member countries of European Union. Along with this, it is the 20th smallest country of the 194 independent nations of the world.

The fortifications of the Old City of Luxembourg and its ancient quarters have been part of the UNESCO Cultural World Heritage since 1994.

old city of luxembourg

Despite a dense network of roads and railways, forests cover a third of the country!

Luxembourg has mild winters and cool summers.

Amid plains and woods, strewn with lakes and rivers, Luxembourg’s natural landscapes are enchanting as well as fascinating. Nature in Luxembourg also means to discover unexpectedly a picturesque village, a mysterious ruin or just a breathtaking landscape behind every curve.

luxembourg nature

Little Switzerland is a nickname for a region in the east of Luxembourg.Little Switzerland is thought to have similar terrain to its namesake country, hence the name; it is dominated by craggy terrain, thick forests, some caves and myriad small streams.

little switzerland

Kneiff is a hill in the commune of Troisvierges, in northern Luxembourg, near the tripoint shared with Belgium and Germany. At 560 meters, it is the highest point in the country; it is 1 m taller than Buurgplaatz, which is often incorrectly considered Luxembourg’s highest point.

The castles and the ruins of the fortress are among the main tourist destinations of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Of the 109 identified castles in the Middle Ages, 76 have more or less survived the ravages of time.

vianden castle luxemburg

Victor Hugo, the most prominent French writer resided in Luxembourg in a town near to the German border. Later on, the house was transformed into a museum, which is very famous among the Dutch and French tourists.

Due to its banking secrecy laws, Luxembourg has attained the reputation of a tax haven.

Luxembourg has more than 150 banks.

Luxembourg is the second richest country in the world with an average GDP per capita of $90,333 or EUR 80,410 (in 2015).

noworries

Luxembourg has the highest minimum wage in the EU – paying workers a minimum of EUR 1,923 ($2,167) per month.

Nearly half of Luxembourg’s workforce commutes to work in Luxembourg from another country.

Luxembourg is one of the safest countries in the world. According to a UN survey, you have less chance of being shot in Luxembourg than in any other country in the world. There are around 1,300 police and just two jails in Luxembourg.

Nearly 40% of the population of Luxembourg are immigrants; 15% of them are of Portuguese origin.

The University of Luxembourg is the only university in the country.

university of luxembourg

The literacy rate is 100%, and the quality of education is one of the highest in the world!

The largest wine list in the world is currently at Restaurant Chiggeri with 1,746 options in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg!

largest-wine-list-in-the-world

Luxembourg sells the most alcohol in Europe per capita.However, the large proportion of alcohol purchased by customers from neighbouring countries contributes to the statistically high level of alcohol sales per capita; this level of alcohol sales is thus not representative of the actual alcohol consumption of the Luxembourg population.

alcoholic drinks

Luxembourg cuisine reflects its position on the border between the Latin and Germanic worlds, being heavily influenced by the cuisines of neighboring France and Germany. More recently, it has been enriched by its many Italian and Portuguese immigrants.

Perhaps the most traditional of all Luxembourg meat dishes is Judd mat Gaardebounen, smoked collar of pork with broad beans. The pork is soaked overnight, then boiled with vegetables and spices. Served in copious slices together with the beans and boiled potatoes, it is considered to be the national dish of Luxembourg.

luxembourg dish

Luxembourg shares the Moselle valley with Germany and the local white wines are well known and popular.

Like other northern European countries, Luxembourg also produces popular brands of beer.

With 79.68 telephone lines per 100 people, Luxembourg has the highest ratio of telephone lines to people in the world.

The average person in Luxembourg has just over one-and-a-half mobile phones.

It is famous in Europe for its largest radio and television stations: Radio 5. Luxembourg, the RTL Group of Luxembourg. It runs 34 television and 33 radio stations in 12 countries which comprises of M6 channel in France and Channel Five in the United Kingdom.

Besides this, it is the uplink house of SES, carrier of major European satellite services in Germany and Britain.

The main industries of this small European country are iron and steel, banking, food processing and chemicals.

The motto of the Luxembourg is ‘Mir wëlle bleiwe wat mir sinn’ which stands for ‘We want to remain what we are’.