Some Problems in the Standardization of Luxembourgish

2005 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 15520249
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Linguistics
• Research Institution: Aichi University of Education
• Principal Investigator: TAMURA Kenichi Aichi University of Education, Faculty of Education, Professor, 教育学部, 教授 (90179896)
• Project Period (FY): 2003 – 2005
• Keywords: Luxembourgish / Language Policy / Ausbau of Language

Research Abstract

This report deals mainly with the problem of familiarization of Luxembourgish to foreign residents in Luxembourg.
The analysis of the results of the Baleine research in 1997 which was organized by le Centre Universitaire du Luxembourg demonstrates following language conditions of the residents in Luxembourg. 1)The Luxembourgers have generally multilingual proficiency, but in writing French and Luxembourgish and in English in general the younger people have much higher proficiency than the elder. 2)The Portuguese hold their mother tongue very well. The young people of them have multilingual proficiency including Luxembourgish. 3)The number of the foreign residents who can speak Luxembourgish to some extent is not small, but their proficiency in writing it is very low.
The present author visited some Luxembourgish courses for foreigners organized by a group named Projet Moien which had the aim of integrating foreign residents into the society of Luxembourg. The instructors of the courses put an emphasis on oral communication. The result of questionnaires reveals that many participants in the courses appreciate the importance of Luxembourgish in the labor market.