Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Aqui é onde nasceu o meu bisavô. - Here is where my great-grandfather was born.

This is a classic example of subject-verb inversion in a subordinate clause. In Portuguese, when a clause starts with a relative word like onde (where), quando (when), or que (that), it is very natural to put the verb before the subject. This is especially true for verbs about appearing, existing, or arriving, like nascer (to be born). While onde o meu bisavô nasceu isn't strictly wrong, onde nasceu o meu bisavô sounds much more fluid and natural to a native speaker.

The English translation says "was born", which is passive. Why does the Portuguese use the active verb nasceu?

In English, we use the passive voice ("was born") to talk about birth. Portuguese approaches this differently: nascer is an active, standalone verb meaning "to come into existence". You don't use a passive construction for this in Portuguese; nasceu simply translates directly to "was born" all on its own.

Could I phrase this as É aqui que nasceu o meu bisavô instead?

Yes, absolutely! É aqui que... (It is here that...) is a structure used to emphasize exactly where something happened. Aqui é onde... (Here is where...) means exactly the same thing. Both are excellent, natural choices at a B2 level and you will hear native speakers use them interchangeably.

As a quick refresher, is the article o strictly required in o meu bisavô?