The novel phosphor of LaAlGe 2 O 7 activated with the trivalent rare-earth Ln 3+ (Ln=Eu, Sm, Dy) ions were synthesized by solid-state method, and their characterization and luminescent properties were investigated. The absorption, emission and excitation spectra, and decay curves were employed to study the luminescence properties. The calcined powders of the Eu 3+ , Sm 3+ and Dy 3+ ions doped in the LaAlGe 2 O 7 emit bright red, reddish orange and yellowish white light, respectively. In the photoluminescence investigations, there is a single and highly symmetric site for activator ions in the LaAlGe 2 O 7 host lattice. The sharp emission properties show that the LaAlGe 2 O 7 is a suitable host for rare-earth doped laser crystal and phosphor material.