As chair of the German insurance industry federation, Luxembourg’s Norbert Rollinger is a key player in the German economy. He recounts: “My grandfather was born in Ettelbrück 120 years ago and left Luxembourg in the 1920s to study in Nancy. Then he moved to Belgium and then Cologne, where I was born and [where he] lived for 40 years.”
“So, still, I have only a Luxembourgish passport,” says Rollinger, noting that “over time [my] Luxembourgish blood has been significantly diluted.”
The Rollinger family’s migration trajectory is emblematic in two ways, according to Denis Scuto, an associate professor of contemporary Luxembourgish history at the University of Luxembourg and who is additionally the (in collaboration with the City of Dudelange). “Firstly,” says Scuto, “Luxembourg only truly became a net immigration country after 1945. Before that, it was primarily a land of emigration in the 19th century and a land of emigration and immigration from the 1890s to the Second World War. Secondly, contrary to popular belief, the majority of Luxembourgers emigrated to France, not to the United States.”
As early as 1880, there were approximately 40,000 Luxembourgers in France, not including Alsace-Lorraine. “In Paris alone, there were likely more than 20,000,” the historian notes. “Many people moved for work, especially as domestic servants, mainly female, or as craftsmen or as workers. Many Luxembourgers found jobs in the building sector and helped construct the Paris Metro or the Eiffel Tower. These migrations were partly seasonal, which explains why they have been partly forgotten in historiography.”
Departures to the United States were indeed real but involved around 20,000 people throughout the 19th century, a significant number, but far from the myth of 70,000. Such journeys required initial capital and were not accessible to everyone.
New reasons to emigrate
Why did people emigrate back then? “Jobs and economic opportunities in Luxembourg were much smaller than in big cities like Paris or Brussels. They also fell short compared to [opportunities] in the United States.”
Scuto says that one key reason for emigration was how land was divided among families. With a high birth rate, the transmission of heritage became crucial. “The civil code said to divide things equally. But, in reality, families handled it differently. The eldest child often got the biggest share. Some kids went to religious orders. Others continued their studies. For some, emigration was the only choice, usually with a little money to start fresh.”
Contrary to popular belief, the majority of Luxembourgers emigrated to France, not to the United States.
Another determining factor was the lack of work and sufficient wages. “Things shifted after 1918. The steel and mining industries in Luxembourg became a key driver of jobs in the country. Before 1914, about 60% of workers in steel factories and mines were foreigners; after the First World War, this proportion fell to 20% or less.”
Although the migratory balance gradually reversed with industrialisation and Luxembourg becoming a financial centre and a European capital, Luxembourgers have continued in the last decades to emigrate. Statec reports that the number of people with Luxembourg nationality living abroad keeps rising. From 2020 to 2024, it grew by 68.5%. As detailed in La démographie luxembourgeoise en chiffres (2024 edition), “On the one hand, more and more Luxembourgers are leaving Luxembourg and settling in the three neighbouring countries. On the other hand, many people have acquired Luxembourg nationality while living abroad.”
“Today, reasons for emigration have shifted,” Scuto says. “It’s no longer about travelling to distant lands. Instead, it focuses on cross-border mobility. The current migratory phenomenon is massive and is mainly due to the high cost of housing in Luxembourg. Luxembourg is now a metropolis. However, it’s a metropolis without a hinterland, as sociologist Fernand Fehlen points out. This periphery is already outside the country, in France, Belgium and Germany.”
Rush for Luxembourg passports
The other aspect directly concerns nationality. The 2008 reform kicked off a major shift in Luxembourg’s immigration policy, allowing people to “reacquire” nationality if they could prove that they have an ancestor who was Luxembourgish in 1900. The expert points out that this term is misleading because the vast majority of individuals who have taken advantage of this reform never had Luxembourgish nationality.
“This measure reflected a romantic and nationalistic idea of the ‘true Luxembourger,’ he says. “It was represented by the American cousin who is said to have stayed close to his peasant roots. Legislators did not expect that Luxembourg nationality would turn dual nationality--as you can be an American and a Luxembourger--into a valuable asset in a globalised world. Today, it is seen by some as a private luxury that can be converted, if necessary, into advantages in the globalised world. Yossi Harpaz uses ‘Citizenship 2.0’ to talk about nationalities that offer strategic benefits.”
In this context, thousands of Brazilians, who have no direct ties to Luxembourg, have used the 2008 law to seek this passport and get dual Brazilian-Luxembourgish citizenship.
Still, notes Scuto, many of the beneficiaries of “reacquisition” are actually Belgian and French border workers. “Today, those who use this mechanism are not just ‘American cousins.’ [They are, for example, Belgians who] have kept a direct professional and geographical link to the country.”
The use of the reacquisition law has taken policymakers by surprise. They hadn’t foreseen its popularity, says the associate professor, on account of their limited understanding of Luxembourg’s migratory history. Brazil is a particular case: Luxembourgers started moving there in the early 19th century, a wave of migration that explains the many descendants we see today.
But this route to naturalisation is coming to an end. The authorities have decided to change the law because it doesn’t align with the rules for foreign residents in Luxembourg: foreign residents have to pass a language test after living here for several years, while--until now--a Brazilian with an ancestor who was a Luxembourger in 1900 could obtain nationality without knowing Luxembourgish.
This article was written for the of Paperjam magazine, published on 26 March. The content is produced exclusively for the magazine. It is published on the site to contribute to the full Paperjam archive. .
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