The literature of Luxembourg is little known beyond the country's borders, partly because Luxembourg authors write in one or more of the three official languages (French, German and

Luxembourgish Luxembourgish ( ; also ''Luxemburgish'', ''Luxembourgian'', ''Letzebu(e)rgesch''; Luxembourgish: ) is a West Germanic language that is spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 400,000 people speak Luxembourgish worldwide. As a standard form of th ...

), partly because many works are specifically directed to a local readership. Furthermore, it was not until the 19th century that the literature of Luxembourg began to develop in parallel with growing awareness of the country's national identity following the

Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France: Treaties 1200s and 1300s * Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade * Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France * Trea ...

(1815) and the Treaty of London (1867).Georges Hausemer, "About... Literature in Luxembourg"
Press and Information Service of the Luxembourg government, March 2004, . Retrieved 3 February 2011.

Yolanda of Vianden

There is one historic work which has recently gained a place in Luxembourg literature. The Codex Mariendalensis, a manuscript from the beginning of the 14th century, tells the story of

Yolanda of Vianden Mother Yolanda (or Yolande, Iolanda) of Vianden, O.P., (1231–1283) was the youngest daughter of Count Henry I of Vianden and Margaret, Marchioness of Namur. She joined the Dominican monastery in Marienthal, Luxembourg, against the wishes of h ...

. Discovered in

Ansembourg Ansembourg (, ) is a village in the commune of Helperknapp, in western Luxembourg. , the village had a population of 61. Ansembourg is in part of the Eisch valley known as the Valley of the Seven Castles. The village is the site of two of the ...

in November 1999, it is believed to be the work of Brother Hermann von Veldenz, who wrote the story of Yolanda's life after her death in 1283. It consists of 5,963 lines of rhyming couplets in the distinctive

Moselle Franconian __NOTOC__ Moselle Franconian (german: Moselfränkisch, lb, Muselfränkesch) is a West Central German language, part of the Central Franconian languages area, that includes Luxembourgish. It is spoken in the southern Rhineland and along the ...

German dialect, which bears close similarities to today's Luxembourgish. The poem tells how Princess Yolanda gave up the comforts of her home in

Vianden Castle Vianden Castle ( lb, Veianer Schlass or (locally) ), located in Vianden in the north of Luxembourg, is one of the largest fortified castles west of the Rhine. With origins dating from the fourth century as a Roman outpost and the 10th century, t ...

to join the Convent of Marienthal where she later became the prioress.

19th century

Despite the use of French and German for administrative purposes, it was ''Lëtzebuerger Däitsch'', now known as

, which was behind the development of Luxembourg's literature in the 19th century, contributing much to the consolidation of the national identity. In 1829,

Antoine Meyer Antoine Meyer, also known as Antun or Tun Meyer (1801–1857) was a Luxembourg-born mathematician and poet who later adopted Belgian nationality. Sometimes referred to as the father of Luxembourgish literature, he is remembered for publishing the ...

published the very first book in Luxembourgish, a collection of poems titled ''E' Schrek op de' Lezeburger Parnassus'' (A Step up the Luxembourg Parnassus). The book contains six poems: a love poem, ''Uen d'Christine'' (Without Christine); a meditation on the romantic subject of night, ''D'Nuecht''" (The Night); a real-life depiction, ''Een Abléck an engem Wiertshaus zu Lëtzebuerg'' (A Moment in a Luxembourg Inn); and three fables, ''D'porzelains an d'ierde Schierbel'' (The Shard of Porcelain and the Earthen Pot), ''D'Spéngel an d'Nol'' (The Pin and the Needle) and ''D'Flou an de Pierdskrécher'' (The Fly and the Horse Trough). Although

Aesop Aesop ( or ; , ; c. 620–564 BCE) was a Greek fabulist and storyteller credited with a number of fables now collectively known as ''Aesop's Fables''. Although his existence remains unclear and no writings by him survive, numerous tales c ...

and

La Fontaine Jean de La Fontaine (, , ; 8 July 162113 April 1695) was a French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his '' Fables'', which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Eu ...

built their fables around animals, Meyer often personified inanimate objects. For example, in ''D'Spéngel an d'Nol'', the well-to-do Miss Needle tries but fails to override the Pin, reflecting the failure of the French aristocracy to prevent the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

. Meyer was to write several more books of Luxembourgish poetry while teaching mathematics at the

University of Liège The University of Liège (french: Université de Liège), or ULiège, is a major public university of the French Community of Belgium based in Liège, Wallonia, Belgium. Its official language is French. As of 2020, ULiège is ranked in the 301 ...

The next generation brought three poets who are now considered to be Luxembourg's classical authors. Edmond de la Fontaine (1823–1891), better known by his pen-name

Dicks Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat Names ...

, is remembered above all for his contributions to the theatre. His comedy ''De Scholtschäin'' (1855), the first play to be performed in Luxembourgish, was followed by ''D'Mumm Sèiss'' (1855), the operetta ''D'Kirmesgäscht'' (1856) and ''De Ramplassang'' (1863). He also wrote several poems and a number of prose works about Luxembourg and its people. His contemporary,

Michel Lentz Michel Lentz (21 May 1820 – 8 September 1893) was a Luxembourg poet. He is best known for having written '' Ons Hémécht'', the national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of ...

(1820–1893), another poet, is best known for having written ''

Ons Hémécht "" (formerly ""; , ) is the national anthem of Luxembourg. Written by Michel Lentz in 1859 and set to music by Jean Antoine Zinnen in 1864, it is performed at national celebrations, while the royal anthem, or, more accurately, the grand ducal a ...

'', Luxembourg's

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

, which contributed much to promoting the Luxembourgish language among its inhabitants. However, it was

Michel Rodange Michel Rodange (3 January 1827 – 27 August 1876) was a Luxembourgish writer and poet, best known for writing Luxembourg's national epic, ''Reynard, Renert'' ull original title: ''Renert oder de Fuuß am Frack an a Ma'nsgrëßt''national epic, ''Renert odder de Fuuss am Frack an a Maansgréisst'' or simply ''

Rénert the Fox Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, a ...

''. Published in 1872, the satirical work is an adaptation of the traditional Low German fox epic to a setting in Luxembourg with pertinent insights into the characteristics of the local people. While little of note was written in German during this period,

Félix Thyes Félix Thyes (19 January 1830 – 8 May 1855) was a Luxembourg writer. He is recognized as the first Luxembourg author to write a novel in French. ''Marc Bruno, profil d'artiste'' was published shortly after his death in 1855. He was also the first ...

(1830–1855) wrote the first Luxembourg novel in French, ''Marc Bruno, profil d'artiste'', which was published shortly after his early death in 1855.

Early 20th century

Batty Weber (1860–1940) worked both as a journalist and as an author of short stories, novels, plays and poems, contributing much to the development of Luxembourg culture. One of his most important contributions to Luxembourg's identity was his ''Abreisskalender'' or Tear-Off Calendar, a daily column he contributed from 1913 to 1940 to the "Luxembuger Zeitung", commenting on items of local cultural interest. An important literary figure in the early 20th century was Nikolaus Welter (1871–1951), who addressed Luxembourg issues in his German-language plays including ''Die Söhne des Öslings'' (1904) and as a poet in ''Hochofen'' (1913). Welter is also regarded as Luxembourg's first literary historian.

Contemporary literature

After a rather quiet period following the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, Anise Koltz (born 1928) began her literary career in the 1950s, initially writing fairy tales in German and Luxembourgish. However, in the 1970s, after the death of her husband who had been tortured by the Nazis, she turned exclusively to writing poetry in French. Her books have been widely published and translated into several languages. In 1998, she was awarded the

Prix Guillaume Apollinaire The prix Guillaume Apollinaire is a French poetry prize first awarded in 1941. It was named in honour of French writer Guillaume Apollinaire. It annually recognizes a collection of poems for its originality and modernity. Members of the jury The ...

for ''Le mur du son''. Koltz has done much to create interest in Luxembourg writers through her annual ''Journées littéraires de Mondorf'' (Mondorf Literary Days) which she launched in 1963. She is now widely considered the country's most important contemporary author. Jean Portante (born 1950) is a successful contemporary poet and novelist, not just in Luxembourg but in the wider French-speaking world. Brought up in an Italian immigrant family, he chose French as the language for his works. While primarily known as a poet, he has also written short stories, plays, screenplays and novels. He has also translated the works of

Juan Gelman Juan Gelman (3 May 1930 – 14 January 2014) was an Argentine poet. He published more than twenty books of poetry between 1956 and his death in early 2014. He was a naturalized citizen of Mexico, country where he arrived as a political exile of th ...

and Gonzalo Rojas into French. Jean Krier, writing poetry in German, was awarded both the German Chamisso Prize and the Luxembourg

Servais Prize The Servais Prize for Literature (french: Prix Servais pour la littérature) is a Luxembourgish literary award, awarded since 1992 by the Servais Foundation. It is judged by a jury, and can be bestowed upon any writer from Luxembourg Luxem ...

in 2011 for his ''Herzens Lust Spiele''.

Novels in Luxembourgish

Luxembourgish literature was long confined to poetry and the theatre, but in the 1980s, as a result of the movement to make Luxembourgish an official language, Guy Rewenig (born 1947) and

Roger Manderscheid Roger Manderscheid (1 March 1933, in Itzig – 1 June 2010) was a writer from Luxembourg. He won the Batty Weber Prize in 1990 for his literary work and the inaugural Servais Prize The Servais Prize for Literature (french: Prix Servais pour la ...

(1933–2010) both wrote novels in Luxembourgish. Rewenig's ''Hannert dem Atlantik'' (1985) broke new ground as the first novel written in the local language. The story of Jemp Medinger, a street sweeper, it is a critical account of the problems of family life and the authoritarian structures of politics and society, adapting the "stream of consciousness" technique to experiment with the Luxembourgish lexicon.Marie-Anne Hansen-Pauly, "The Languages of Literature as a Reflection of Social Realities and Traditions in Luxembourg" in Manfred Schmeling and Monika Schmitz-Emans, "Multilinguale Literatur im 20. Jahrhundert", Könighausen & Neumann, Gmbh, Würzburg, 2002, p. 148 et seq. . Onlin
here
Manderscheid's childhood trilogy ''Schacko klak'', ''De papagei um kâschtebam'' and ''Feier a flam'', published in 1988, surprisingly sold 3,000 copies. "Schacko klak" is in fact a kind of autobiography told by an outsider. The title is a play on words reminding the reader of both a top hat (from French) and a military helmet (from German) but it is simply a nickname for the author alluding to his rounded bald head. Manderscheid's book reveals the author's consciousness of language use in Luxembourg, describing comical incidents with German soldiers in the war as well as the rather artificial use of French (based essentially on the language taught in the classroom). His use of Luxembourgish allows him to achieve this most effectively. These initiatives led to a wider interest in writing novels in Luxembourgish. Among those published since 1990 are ''Frascht'' by

Nico Helminger Nico Helminger (born 1953) is a Luxembourg author who has written poetry, novels, plays and libretti for operas. In 2008, he was awarded the Batty Weber Prize for his literary work."Helminger, Guy", ''Luxemburger Lexikon'', Editions Guy Binsfeld, ...

, ''Angscht virum Groussen Tunn'', by Jean-Michel Treinen, ''Perl oder Pica'' by Jhemp Hoscheit, ''Iwwer Waasser'' by Georges Hausemer, and a number of novels by Josy Braun including ''Porto fir d'Affekoten'' and ''Kréiwénkel''.

Literature prizes

Luxembourg has two major literature prizes: the

which has been awarded annually since 1992 to a Luxembourg author for a specific work; and the Batty Weber Prize, considered to be the national literary prize, which has been awarded once every three years since 1987 to a Luxembourg author for his entire literary work."Prix et concours littéraires"
''Portail du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg''. Retrieved 11 February 2011.

References

{{Literature of Europe European literature