Luxembourg – the multiple city
Since a few years, the City of Luxembourg has opted for a slogan full of symbolism. The wording has been chosen to reflect one of the most prominent characteristics of daily life in the capital: “Luxembourg- Multiplicity” or if you prefer “Luxembourg – the multiple city”. Even the busses of the public transport proudly feature the multi-coloured bar codes, just to let everyone know that this city is definitely “multi”.
Multi-lingual
To prove the point, just try to ask one of the native inhabitants and you most likely will be able to speak to them in your preferred language. The reason being, as you might guess, they are multi-lingual. It is not without a certain pride that they would explain to you that young kids are taught German and French from the very beginning of their school curriculum. And as they enrol in high school, English is added onto their teaching program. As a result you’ll find young adults able to converse in three foreign languages on top of their Luxembourgish mother tongue. As a matter of fact, with the many foreign communities living in town, it does not come as a surprise to hear a surprising mix of languages when strolling through the streets of the city.
Multi-cultural
Going from there, it is only one small step to figure out that the city excels in multi-cultural activities. Numerous theatres or show venues feature plays and shows in at least four languages. Furthermore, the different cultural institutions are programming world famous artists or groups on a year-round basis.
When visiting Luxembourg, you might get tempted to go to the movies. In that case you should be aware of the likelihood that the film is showing in its original version with subtitles in varying languages. So depending on your own language skills you better check beforehand to make sure you are assisting a presentation with an appropriate mix of languages.
Does this sound like an interesting perspective to dip into another cosmopolitan environment? Let’s talk about gastronomy. There is a tremendous variety of tastes from all over the world that can be discovered in the local restaurants. Be sure however to also give a typical Luxembourgish cuisine a try.
Multi-national
The advertised multiplicity also shows when looking at the diversity of the city’s population. Indeed, the vast majority of the habitants of Luxembourg, the capital City of the Grand-Duchy, are of foreign nationality. They represent some 70 percent of the city dwellers and come from 167 different countries making up for a unique cosmopolitan constellation. As the most represented nations essentially have Latin roots, you might feel a certain southerly touch in town.
Indeed, at a second glance there is no real surprise when looking at the multiple city. Even in long remote times, the geographical situation of Luxembourg at the crossroads of the important European powers has led to changing occupations from different invaders. In the course of the centuries they did not just leave behind devastation but also their cultural footprints. In the more recent past, it was the immigrants from the Mediterranean looking for employment in the steel industry first, in the construction business thereafter, who continued the never ending game of diversification.
Nowadays, Luxembourg hosting the headquarters of many European institutions and being a world famous financial hotspot, it is attracting professionals from all over the world. Meanwhile, diversity has grown to be part of the very DNA of the city.
Speaking about integration, Luxembourg distinguishes itself by quite another unique trait. When it comes to political activities on the local level, there is no difference between nationals and foreigners. Not only do they both have the right to vote for the city council, but they both also have the right to present themselves as candidates for the elections. This is how “multipli-city” is lived in Luxembourg-City.
