The Red Lands form a geographic region in southern and south-western Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

. They are called this way for their red iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

-laden earth.

The Red Lands roughly correspond with the southern part of the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette

Esch-sur-Alzette (canton)

Esch-sur-Alzette is a canton in the south-west of Luxembourg, in Luxembourg District. The capital is Esch-sur-Alzette.The canton consists of the following 14 communes:*Bettembourg*Differdange*Dudelange*Esch-sur-Alzette*Frisange*Kayl*Leudelange...

, along the border with France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. Geologically, the Red Lands are sedimentary, mostly sandstone

Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

s and conglomerate

Conglomerate (geology)

A conglomerate is a rock consisting of individual clasts within a finer-grained matrix that have become cemented together. Conglomerates are sedimentary rocks consisting of rounded fragments and are thus differentiated from breccias, which consist of angular clasts...

s, formed in the Middle Jurassic

Middle Jurassic

The Middle Jurassic is the second epoch of the Jurassic Period. It lasted from 176-161 million years ago. In European lithostratigraphy, rocks of this Middle Jurassic age are called the Dogger....

 epoch.

As one of the most prodigious iron-producing regions in Western Europe, the Red Lands developed a thriving local steel industry, which has now developed into Arcelor

Arcelor

Arcelor S.A. was the world's largest steel producer in terms of turnover and the second largest in terms of steel output, with a turnover of €30.2 billion and shipments of 45 million metric tons of steel in 2004...

, the world’s second largest producer of steel

Steel

Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...

. Throughout the industrial decline of recent years, the Red Lands have diversified into construction materials, engineering, and chemicals.

The region is the most densely-populated part of Luxembourg, with several of Luxembourg's largest towns and cities, including Bettembourg

Bettembourg

Bettembourg is a commune and town in southern Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette, which is part of the district of Luxembourg., the town of Bettembourg, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 7,157...

, Differdange

Differdange

Differdange is a commune with city status in south-western Luxembourg. Differdange is an industrial city that was home to much of Luxembourg's steel production, and lies near the borders with Belgium and France...

, Dudelange

Dudelange

Dudelange is a commune with city status in southern Luxembourg. It is the fourth-most populous commune, with over 18,300 inhabitants. Dudelange is situated close to the border to France....

, Esch-sur-Alzette

Esch-sur-Alzette

Esch-sur-Alzette is a commune with city status, in south-western Luxembourg. It is the country's second city, and its second-most populous commune, with a population of 29,853 people...

, and Schifflange

Schifflange

Schifflange is a commune and town in south-western Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette, which is part of the district of Luxembourg., the town of Schifflange, which lies in the west of the commune, has a population of 7,849....

, all of which have populations in excess of 7,000 people.