Jocelyn C.

Reambonanza
December 6, 2015

BEED-III

Luxembourg - A Country Profile" Essays

Located in Western Europe in between France, Germany, and Belgium, Luxembourg
is a landlocked country with no maritime claims or coastline. As a country with only
2586 square kilometers in total land area, Luxembourg ranks as the 178th largest
country in the world, and its population of about 497,538 puts it at about the 170th
largest country.
With a temperate climate, and a landscape of rolling hills and mountains,
Luxembourg is known as The Green Heart of Europe.
Luxembourgs picturesque landscapes also come with a rich historical background,
and as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Luxembourgs remnant fortress and walls
represent fine military architecture dating back to 963AD .The original fortress built
by a count had since then been expanded and fortified time and again by its
successive owners, including the Burgundians, the Habsburgs, the French, and
several others, before it was finally destroyed after Luxembourg gained its
independence.
Luxembourg was founded in 963 AD, and it only proceeded to gain independence
after the collapse of the Napoleonic Empire in 1815, gaining further autonomy in
1839 at the expense of half its territory which was lost (in the Treaty of London) to
Belgium. In 1867, full independence was attained, and Luxembourg took on a stance
of neutrality until after the world wars when in 1948, Luxembourg entered the
Benelux Customs Union, joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) the
following year, and became a founding member of the European Economic
Community (later the European Union). Luxembourg was also a founding member of
the United Nations (UN), the Organization for Economic Cooperation (OECE), the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Brussels Pact, and
the Council of Europe.
Luxembourg's climate is temperate and mild. Summers are generally cool, with a
mean temperature of about 17c (63f); winters are seldom severe, average
temperature being about 0c (32f). The high peaks of the Ardennes in the north
shelter the country from rigorous north winds, and the prevailing northwesterly
winds have a cooling effect. Rainfall is plentiful in the extreme southwest;
precipitation throughout the country averages about 75 cm (30 in) annually.
Luxembourgers speak Luxembourgian, or Letzeburgesch, the original dialect of the
country, as well as French and German. All three are official languages.
Letzeburgesch is a Germanic dialect related to the Moselle Frankish language that
was once spoken in western Germany. It rarely appears in written form.
Letzeburgesch, French, and German are all languages of instruction in primary
schools, while French is the most common language of instruction in secondary
schools. Government publications are generally in French. English is also spoken.