Born in Wiltz as one of eleven children, Lex Roth celebrates his 92nd birthday this Sunday, 22 June. He entered the world in 1933 as the tenth child in a large family. His mother, Ketty Wilmes, passed away from a diabetic crisis in January 1943 at the age of 48, leaving his father, Leo Roth, to raise the children alone in the midst of the Second World War. Leo lived to the age of 89. Today, Lex still has two living sisters: Ketty Beck-Roth, who is 95, and Laure Meyers-Roth, aged 90.
Lex Roth went on to become a schoolteacher by profession. From 1954 to 1968, he taught in Clemency, and he always took great pleasure in languages, especially French. After further qualifications, he became a French teacher at the Lycée Technique Victor Hugo in Esch.
He remembers only learning his first word of French in the second trimester of his second school year, but later in secondary school, the teachers became far more rigorous, according to Roth. Even today, he says he would tip his hat to them out of respect if he wore one. He was drawn to French because of its musicality, noting that Luxembourgers tend to speak from the throat, while the French use the front of their mouths.
Later in his career, Roth also taught French at the School of Business and Management (ECG) at Geesseknäppchen. He worked in education for 48 years and speaks fondly of those decades, saying he greatly enjoyed teaching and holds few, if any, negative memories of that time.
Reflecting on the past, he describes the 1930s as “a different world” but adds that “different” doesn’t necessarily mean “worse”. As the tenth child, he always tried to keep up with his older siblings, though he was often told to be quiet – something he admits he never quite managed and still doesn’t today, laughing warmly at the memory.
Roth also has strong views on Luxembourg’s National Day, believing it should be a National Day of Remembrance. He expresses some sadness that many people fail to appreciate how fortunate Luxembourg is. From his perspective, the country enjoys one of the best climates in the world and offers an exceptionally high standard of living. He urges people to recognise this privilege.
He also believes Luxembourg is too small to be a republic, saying he personally prefers having a Grand Duke or Grand Duchess over a rotating cast of elected presidents, who might lack the same symbolic continuity.
A lifelong advocate for the Luxembourgish language, Roth was the founding president of “Actioun Lëtzebuergesch”, a language advocacy group formed in 1971 with the aim of promoting Luxembourgish. He dismisses the idea that Luxembourgish is “just a dialect”, arguing that every language is an “idiom” – in reference to a French linguist who deconstructed the idea of dialect and language. He insists that the language is not in decline. In fact, he believes it is stronger than ever, noting that more Luxembourgish is being written now than at any point in history, and that the written form plays a key role in solidifying its presence.
What matters, he adds, is avoiding any form of linguistic fanaticism. Despite having written thousands of articles and hosted numerous broadcasts, no one, he says, could ever accuse him of fanaticism, as his sole message has always been to show why the language is a valuable asset for the country. He also highlights that most second-generation immigrants grow up speaking Luxembourgish.
From 1980 onwards, Roth taught Luxembourgish classes at the Grand Ducal Court for three years and hosted numerous radio and television programmes for many years.
Over the course of his life, he has received many honours, including being named a Commander of the Order of Civil and Military Merit of Adolphe of Nassau, a Grand Officer of the Order of Merit, a Grand Officer of the Order of the Oak Crown, and a recipient of the award for services to the Luxembourgish language.
Roth remains humble about these accolades. He says he’s not particularly proud or boastful about them, but doesn’t make fun of them either, adding that those who mock such honours are usually the ones who haven’t received any.
Roth retired in 1993 at the age of 60. Father of five, it was important for him to play an active role at home as both a husband and a father, Roth explains. He still enjoys cooking and grocery shopping to this day, though he’s less enthusiastic about cleaning, which is why someone occasionally comes to help, he states. His favourite dishes include ragout and roast beef.
Smoking is still part of his daily routine – he goes through a pack of cigarettes each day. He notes with a grin that his father, too, was a heavy smoker well into his 80s and often told him to quit. Roth jokes that if he ever gave up smoking, he’d probably stop doing everything else too.
This Sunday, 22 June, he will celebrate his birthday at a restaurant with his family. No one is being pressured to attend, only those who want to will join. And for his 95th birthday, he says with a smile, the celebration will be on a grander scale.
