Why do they call it a PASSPORT!?

A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth. Most often, nationality and citizenship are congruent (bonus points in Math class for Mrs. Schultz or Ms. Rosinski if you can tell me what congruent means :) ). Basically, your passport proves to everyone else who you are like a birth certificate can prove when you were born.

A passport does not grant you access into other countries, it is merely used for identification. However the passport is used to grant you access back into the country that issued you the document.

BUT WHY DO THEY CALL IT A PASSPORT!?

(I'm so glad you asked... :) I'm kind of a nerd but one of my favorite classes in college was Linguistics and we studied the origin of words!)

The word PASSPORT has it's origins in France all the way back to the 1500s. When broken apart the word passport becomes the french verb passer (meaning: to pass)+ port (a place where ships load and unload). In that case the word literally means to pass through a port. Back in France in the 1500s there were no planes and the only way to travel overseas was by a boat. In this case everyone had to pass through a port if they were entering another country or returning home. The passport allowed officials in the home country to validate the individuals identification and allow them back into their country.

Inside each passport is the following page which states: "The Secretary of State of the United States of America hereby requests all whom it may concern to permit the citizen/national of the United States named herein to pass without delay or hinderance and in case of need to give all lawful aid and protection." The helps to tell other countries that the United States government believes that the person holding the passport should be able to pass freely. (The US will not issue a passport to those who have committed a crime or if they feel they will be a threat outside of their home country).



We still use passports the same way however most of us will not travel by boat. I will not be entering a port when I make it to Europe but this passport will be used as it has been by others for hundreds of years. I will carry it with me to each country I go and as I visit they will add a stamp to the booklet that says where I have been. I will update you as I move throughout Europe and show you the stamps that I have collected for each place that I have been.

Below is a picture of my passport.