The word mafia originated in Sicily. The Sicilian noun mafiusu (in Italian: mafioso) roughly translates to mean "swagger", but can also be translated as "boldness, bravado". In reference to a man, mafiusu in 19th-century … See more

Introduced by Pio La Torre, article 416-bis of the Italian Penal Code defines a Mafia-type association (associazione di tipo mafioso) as one … See more

Cosa Nostra is not a centralized organization but rather a loose confederation of about one hundred groups known … See more

Scholars such as Diego Gambetta and Leopold Franchetti have characterized the Mafia as a "cartel of private protection firms". The primary activity of the Mafia is to provide … See more

In 1876, Leopoldo Franchetti described the Sicilian Mafia as an "industry of violence". In 1993, the Italian sociologist Diego Gambetta described … See more

The genesis of Cosa Nostra is hard to trace because mafiosi are very secretive and do not keep historical records of their own. They have been known to spread deliberate lies … See more

Initiation ceremony
One of the first accounts of an initiation ceremony into the Mafia was given by Bernardino Verro See more