Literature of Luxembourg

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), 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 (1815) and the Treaty of London (1867).

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

Despite the use of French and German for administrative purposes, it was Lëtzebuerger Däitsch, now known as Luxembourgish, 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 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). It is interesting to note that while Aesop and La Fontaine 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. Meyer was to write several more books of Luxembourgish poetry while teaching mathematics at the University of Liège.

...
Wikipedia