4 ms·

Well theoretically, your birth or naturalization certificate is proof of citizenship, not a passport. And travel can theoretically be done without any sort of

• phaer 13y ago
  > Historically passports are a very recent thing in the history of travel. Because border control per se is a rather modern thing.
• vacri 13y ago
  Your birth certificate isn't proof of citizenship. You can have your citizenship revoked, or you can be born to traveling parents in a country that doesn't automatically recognise such births as citizens. I wouldn't really say that passports are a very recent thing in the history of travel, since passports predate mass travel. The expansion of rail in 19th century Europe made enforcing passport requirements much more difficult. But even before passports, people would travel with letters of recommendation or other such papers to indicate who they were. While the document called a 'passport' has only been with us for a couple of centuries, the concept has been around for ages. And while you can theoretically travel without a passport, don't expect an expedient process on arrival. Lack of a passport is not a trivial thing.