Luxembourg : Ask Biography

General information

Common name

Luxembourg

Local name

Name

Motto

"Mir wëlle bleiwe wat mir sinn" (Luxembourgish)
"We want to remain what we are"

Anthem

Ons Heemecht
"Our Homeland"

Royal anthem

De Wilhelmus 1

Capital

Luxembourg

Largest city

capital

Official languages

Luxembourgish (de jure since 1984), French, German

Demonym

Luxembourgers

Government

Government

Unitary parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy

Grand Duke

Henri (List)

Prime Minister

Jean-Claude Juncker (List)

Independence

Independence

From French empire (Treaty of Paris)

9 June 1815

1st Treaty of London

19 April 1839

2nd Treaty of London

11 May 1867

End of personal union

23 November 1890

EU accession

25 March 1957

Geography

Total Area

998.6 sq mi (2586.4 km2) (175th)

Water %

0.00%

Demography

Population Est.

511840 (170th)

Population census

439539 (2001)

Density (pop.)

193.5/km² (67th) (501.3/sq mi)

Economy

GDP PPP

$41.091 billion (2010)

GDP (PPP) per capita

$81,383

GDP (nominal)

$54.950 billion (2010)

GDP (nominal) per capita

$108,831

Other information

HDI

(+) 0.852 (2010) (very high) (24th)

Currency

Euro (-)2 (EUR)

Time zone

CET (UTC+1)

- Summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

Drives on the

right

Internet TLD

.lu3

Calling code

352

Home | Country | Luxembourg

Luxembourg (c-enaudio=en-us-Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg ( , , ), is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland ("good country") in the south. Luxembourg has a population of over half a million people in an area of approximately .

A representative democracy with a constitutional monarch, it is ruled by a grand duke. It is now the world's only remaining sovereign grand duchy. The country has a highly developed economy, with the world's highest GDP (nominal) per capita according to the IMF. Its historic and strategic importance dates back to its founding as a Roman era fortress site and Frankish count's castle site in the Early Middle Ages. It was an important bastion along the Spanish Road when Spain was the principal European power influencing the whole western hemisphere and beyond in the 16th � 17th centuries.

Luxembourg is a member of the European Union, NATO, OECD, the United Nations, Benelux, and the Western European Union, reflecting the political consensus in favour of economic, political, and military integration. The city of Luxembourg, the largest and capital city, is the seat of several institutions and agencies of the EU.

Luxembourg culture is a mix of Romance Europe and Germanic Europe, borrowing customs from each of the distinct traditions. Luxembourg is a trilingual country; German, French and Luxembourgish are official languages. Although a secular state, Luxembourg is predominantly Roman Catholic.