Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey,
Speaker 1: rain Stuff, I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, and I have another classic
Speaker 1: episode for you from our erstwhile host, Christian Sager. This
Speaker 1: one is on my mind as the holidays are currently approaching,
Speaker 1: bringing with them some of the busiest travel days of
Speaker 1: the year. Today, we're talking about where passports come from
Speaker 1: and why of us humans need one to travel internationally. Hey, everybody,
Speaker 1: this is brain Stuff. I'm Christian Saga, and I just
Speaker 1: got back from a vacation. Here's the thing, though, if
Speaker 1: I were going out of the country, let's say, to
Speaker 1: sunny Bolivia, my whole trip would have hinged on one
Speaker 1: vital thing, my passport. But what is this thing exactly?
Speaker 1: Why do I need it to travel? Well, the first
Speaker 1: question has a pretty clear cut answer. A passport is
Speaker 1: a document issued by a government that verifies your identity
Speaker 1: and gives you the right to travel under its protection.
Speaker 1: The word passport comes from passport of Middle French phrase
Speaker 1: from around the fifteen hundreds. However, the idea of a
Speaker 1: passport is positively ancient. You can find evidence of state
Speaker 1: sponsored travel documents dating from as far back as four
Speaker 1: hundred and fifty b c E. And since that time
Speaker 1: these documents have existed in one form or another, with
Speaker 1: varying degrees of success. Since about the nineteen eighties, most
Speaker 1: passports have been regulated by a department of the United
Speaker 1: Nations called the International Civil Aviation Organization or I see A. Oh,
Speaker 1: so why do you need one? Well, ultimately, it goes
Speaker 1: down to proof of nationality. For example, let's say I
Speaker 1: was caught up in a vast conspiracy and I had
Speaker 1: to travel to the Vatican. That happens, right Anyhow, I'm
Speaker 1: flying into Italy and I have to present some sort
Speaker 1: of proof that I'm really coming from where I say
Speaker 1: I am coming from. Otherwise, any old supervillain with a
Speaker 1: plausible Yankee accent could stroll off the run way pretending
Speaker 1: to be an American. Right, So, possessing a passport is
Speaker 1: like having your country of origin vouch for you, assuring
Speaker 1: other nations that you are in fact the person you
Speaker 1: say you are. Keep in mind, however, that possession of
Speaker 1: a valid passport alone does not guarantee your entrance. Countries
Speaker 1: allow visitors at their own discretion, which means that in theory,
Speaker 1: they can refuse entry to pretty much anyone at any time,
Speaker 1: so even if you have a valid passport, make sure
Speaker 1: to check the entry policies of the country you're visiting
Speaker 1: before you hop on that plane. And not everyone's happy
Speaker 1: with the passport system. In the Invention of the Passport,
Speaker 1: Professor John Torpi argues that it is inherently a monopoly
Speaker 1: of the state, meaning a private company like say how
Speaker 1: Stuff Works, couldn't just slap my mug in a little
Speaker 1: book and send me off to Japan. Religious organizations can't
Speaker 1: do this either. Not only do countries control the passport system,
Speaker 1: but the issuing country can revoke your passport at any time.
Speaker 1: And of course, not everyone has a passport either. Only
Speaker 1: about forty six percent of Americans had either a passport
Speaker 1: or the less comprehensive passport card. The fifty percent who
Speaker 1: don't have one overwhelmingly didn't get it because well, they
Speaker 1: just didn't want the thing. However, people can end up
Speaker 1: without a passport for numerous reasons. Perhaps it's lost or stolen,
Speaker 1: in which case you'll need to contact your local consulate.
Speaker 1: In cases of war torn countries, refugees may not have
Speaker 1: a passport. Some people are even considered stateless, meaning the
Speaker 1: country they live in does not consider them a citizen.
Speaker 1: The United Nations has special laws describing how to issue
Speaker 1: travel documents in these cases, So there you have it.
Speaker 1: In theory, almost every single person on the globe needs
Speaker 1: a passport or some sort of official document to travel.
Speaker 1: This official document could be something for an individual will,
Speaker 1: or it could be an agreement between specific countries. At
Speaker 1: one point or another, there's no other way to legally travel.
Speaker 1: Virtually everyone needs something like this. Ah. But did you
Speaker 1: notice how I just said almost every person and virtually everyone.
Speaker 1: That's right, ladies and gentlemen. There is one person in
Speaker 1: the world who can travel freely and legally without a
Speaker 1: passport or other documents, the Queen of England. True story.
Speaker 1: British passports are issued in the name of the Queen,
Speaker 1: therefore it's not necessary for her to have one. The
Speaker 1: rest of the family has to have a passport, though,
Speaker 1: even the Princes William and Harry. Today's episode was written
Speaker 1: by Ben Bollin and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff
Speaker 1: is a production of I Heart Radios How Stuff Works.
Speaker 1: To hear more history you might not have known about
Speaker 1: from Ben, check out his podcast Ridiculous History, and of course,
Speaker 1: for more on this amounts of other international topics. Visit
Speaker 1: our home planet, hows to works dot com plus for
Speaker 1: more podcasts from my Heart Radio with thy Heart Radio, app,
Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
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