Learning Luxembourgish?
Starting with the appropriate greeting will help you make a good impression and get the conversation rolling with native Luxembourgish speakers.
In this lesson, you’ll learn different ways to say hello in Luxembourgish. Some are more formal than others and some are universally used.
How to Say Hello in Luxembourgish
There are several ways to say hello in Luxembourgish, depending on the time of day and the situation.
Moien – Hello
If you’ve been in Luxembourg even for just a few days, you will likely have heard people greet each other with the word:
Moien literally means morning but on its own, it is used throughout the day until 17h00/18h00 as Hello. If you want to be more formal, use:
Bonjour – Hello (formal)
When we add the word gudde(n) to Moien then it takes on its true meaning and we have the expression good morning. gudde(n)* meaning good.
Gudde Moien –good morning / hello
Just like Moien it can be used throughout the day until 17h00/18h00 to simply say hello.
When you want to greet someone between noon and 17.00/18h00 you can also use:
Gudde Mëtteg – good midday / afternoon
To greet colleagues in passing during the lunch break, you will drop gudde* and just say Mëtteg.
*gudden is the declined version of the adjective gutt. And it is subject to the n-rule.
To greet someone after 18h00 you will use
Gudden Owend – good evening
Informal Ways to Say Hello in Luxembourgish
Let’s have a look at ways to say hello in an informal situation – with friends, peers, or your family.
Friends and young people often greet each other more informally with:
Salut – Hi
When saying hello to a person you know very well, native speakers don’t always say Moien. They eye up one another silently in a salutation-standoff, before saying:
An? – Hello
Literally this means And? but is commonly used as a casual way of saying hello.To add an extra degree of affection to your An?, you can append du, for a sweet-sounding:
An du?
Besides An?, there are other ways to climb down the ladder of formality to meet your peers. You will hear native speakers dropping the e of Moien and hear:
Moin!
…and you will also often hear Luxemburger use the German word:
Hallo – Hello
How to Greet Someone in Luxembourg
Greetings aren’t just words. When you say hello, depending on where you are, you may hug or kiss the cheeks of the person you’re greeting. In Luxembourg, we usually shake hands in formal situation. Make sure you make eye contact, it may be considered rude otherwise.
When you are on familiar terms with someone, you can use their first name. But in a formal situation, you can address someone by their last name, using Här (mister) or Madamm (miss/mrs).
Want to build your Luxembourgish from the ground up?
If you’re just starting to learn Luxembourgish, these little details can sometimes feel confusing.
That’s why I created my A1 Foundation Course: to help beginners build a solid foundation in Luxembourgish, understand the language step by step, and gain the confidence to actually use it in everyday situations.
If you’re at the beginning of your Luxembourgish journey, this course is the perfect place to start.
