Credit: MENJE / Heydoo
On Wednesday 26 October 2022, Luxembourg's Minister for Education, Children and Youth, Claude Meisch, announced a panoply of publications and events on the occassion of the 150th anniversary of well-known Luxembourg literary work Reenert by Michel Rodange.
Minister Meisch emphasised on the importance of this work for Luxembourg: "There are not many Luxembourgish literary figures who are as present in society as Reenert. Michel Rodange's sparse feathers, his relaxed language and his sophisticated way of taking a critical look at society through the animal world are not only a piece of Luxembourg heritage, but also a literary pleasure."
Re-edition of Reenert - The Fox in a Sunday Suit and in Human Shape
The Pedagogical and Technological Research and Innovation Coordination Service (Service de Coordination de la Recherche et de l'Innovation pédagogiques et technologiques - SCRIPT) and the centre for the Luxembourgish language (ZLS) have jointly edited a new issue of Reenert. In addition to the original text from 1872, set in today's orthography, the book contains a biography of the author as well as essays that shed light on the literary and historical background.
In addition, the book explains old words that are no longer familiar to everyone. There are a total of 900 terms that can be found right next to the verses.
The young Luxembourgish artist Mia Kinsch has realised several illustrations that give the work a fresh appearance and at the same time do justice to the timelessness of the classic.
4th Volume of the Luxembourg vocabulary: Zwackert, berdank! – 89 foxy words from Reenert
The centre for the Luxembourgish language has selected a good number of words from the helluvull of word explanations in Reenert and put them on display in the fourth volume of the series "Luxembourger Wuertschatz".
The series "Luxembourger Wuertschatz" is jointly edited by ZLS and SCRIPT. Four volumes have been published so far.
Reenert now also in English
With the English translation, Reenert is now also available for the English-speaking community in the country and at the same time for research all over the world. The Reenert in English can be downloaded for free as a PDF document via www.heydoo.lu.
A colloque around Reenert and a reading as part of the Walfer book days
Reenert is also at the centre of the colloquium on Friday 18 November 2022 from 14:00 to 18:00 at the EduPôle in Walfer and is organised by SCRIPT and ZLS, in collaboration with the Commissioner for the Luxembourgish Language, within the framework of the Walfer book days.
There, a number of experts come to speak, who, for example, enter the biography of Michel Rodange, the historical background of Reenert, Reenert in the Second World War, the vocabulary, the English translation and the illustration of the new edition. The conference is in Luxembourgish and will be broadcast live on RTL.lu. Participation is free but prior registration is required by email via: lux@men.lu.
On the Walfer book days, Jeff Thill and Marc Limpach read different passages from Reenert - each time the same extract, once in Luxembourgish and once in English. The reading is on Sunday 20 November 2022 at 11:45.
At the Walfer Book Days, the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth is represented by SCRIPT and the ZLS, which put Reenert in the centre of their joint stand.
