The Civil Rights Act of 1866 had granted citizenship to all persons born in the United States if they were not subject to a foreign power, and this clause of the Fourteenth Amendment constitutionalized this rule.
《1866年民权法案》赋予任何生于美国且非外国势力的人公民身份，而第十四条修正案的这一条款则将该规则宪法化。