Luxembourg
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
Capital: Luxembourg
History
Founded in 963, Luxembourg became a grand duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839 but gained a larger measure of autonomy. Full independence was attained in 1867. Overrun by Germany in both world wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community (later the European Union), and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area. In January 2013, Luxembourg assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2013-14 term.
Geography
Metric Units
|
Total Area
|
2,586
sq km
|
| Land Boundaries |
359
km
|
| Border Countries |
Belgium 148 km, France 73 km, Germany 138 km |
| Coastline |
0
km
|
| Terrain |
mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle flood plain in the southeast |
| Minimum Elevation |
133
m
|
| Maximum Elevation |
559
m
|
| Climate |
modified continental with mild winters, cool summers |
| Natural Resources |
iron ore (no longer exploited), arable land |
| Arable Land |
23.9% |
| Permanent Crops |
0.58% |
Economy
Budget & Debt
Trade
| Exports |
$15.5 billion |
| Export Items |
machinery and equipment, steel products, chemicals, rubber products, glass |
| Export Partners |
Germany 22.2%, France 15.6%, Belgium 13.2%, UK 7.3%, Italy 5.4%, Switzerland 4.3%, Netherlands 4.1% (2011) |
| Imports |
$25.08 billion |
| Import Items |
minerals, metals, foodstuffs, quality consumer goods |
| Import Partners |
Belgium 30.3%, Germany 26%, France 10.8%, China 6.9%, Netherlands 5.8%, US 5.2% (2011) |
People
| Population |
514,862 |
| Population Growth |
1.13% |
| Ethnic Groups |
Luxembourger 63.1%, Portuguese 13.3%, French 4.5%, Italian 4.3%, German 2.3%, other EU 7.3%, other 5.2% (2000 census) |
| Religion |
Roman Catholic 87%, other (includes Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 13% (2000) |
| Life Expectancy |
79.88 years |
| Infant Mortality |
0.97 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Maternal Mortality |
1.4 deaths/100,000 live births |
Energy
