So I am right now learning Luxembourgish in preparation for the Sproochentest. One thing I have noticed is that the word "séier" means both "fast" and "very" according to LOD:
"Confronting" other Luxemburgers with this gives me mixed receptions. On the one side they recognize LOD as an authority on the topic, but then again they are not using this word for fast, rather preferring the more German "schnell":
https://lod.lu/artikel/SCHNELL1
Still I find the fact so hilarious I think I will simply continue using it. Did someone here ever use séier for fast? Is it an archaic word?
by De_Noir
5 comments
I just came across the word myself in a tutorial, but it didn’t even show up for me on LOD. It’s supposed to mean “very”, but I can’t find any usages anywhere else.
As a native speaker, in my mind that’s a regional difference. My family says “séier” for “fast”, but doesn’t use “séier” for “very”. Very fast would be “immens séier” in my family. In my mind “schnell” is something people say “an der Stad” and in the south of the country. And “séier” for “very” is something I’ve only ever heard on the radio.
I suspect you will find different opinions from other people / other parts of the country. Everyone speaks their own version of Luxembourgish, but somehow we all understand each other.
I always use seier for fast
From my experience: séier is being supplanted by schnell. Schnell has steadily risen in popularity in my lifetime, while séier vanishes more and more. The younger somebody is, the higher the probability that they’ll say séier. (And, imo, schnell wasn’t originally Luxembourgish, it’s a German word supplanting the Luxembourgish word.)
Séier as ‘very’ has, again by my personal experience, always been a niche use.
personally i use “ganz séier” for very fast 🙂