“Place of birth” is a requirement in almost every passport around the world. Not in Switzerland. Swiss passports and ID cards care only about your “place of origin”. What’s the difference, and how does it affect the Swiss Abroad? Every Swiss citizen has a “place of origin” – Heimatort in German, lieu d’origine in French and luogo di attinenza in Italian – but on a map many would struggle to find the village where a distant ancestor once lived and which is now printed on a card in their wallet. “The concept of the Heimatort is a Swiss quirk and is unique worldwide,” wrote Jrene Rolli in Swiss magazine Annabelle. She was surprised to discover that, following a merging of municipalities, her Heimatort had changed from leafy little Belpberg to Belp, home of Bern Airport. + Merging communes raises identity issues “I was outraged – I felt robbed of my identity,” she fumed, despite admitting she’d never felt anything for Belpberg, having been born and raised in nearby Bern. “My ancestors ...
