We discuss the notion of mass, mostly for fermions, and its relation to the breaking of CP invariance, the natural symmetry of gauge interactions. In a first model, we show how compactification on a Vortex in 2 extra dimensions leads to a replication of generations in 3+1, with challenging mass patterns, and testable consequences in flavour-changing neutral currents (family-number conserving), both at low energies and at future colliders. In different model, we show how CP violation can result from compactification from 4+1 to 3+1 dimensions.