The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of disputes between criminals as well as the organization and enforcement of illicit agreements between criminals through the use of threat or violence. The term "mafia" was originally applied to the Sicilian Mafia. The term has since expanded to encompass other organizations of similar methods and purpose, e.
The term was coined by the press and is informal; the criminal organizations themselves have their own names e. When used alone and without any qualifier, "Mafia" or "the Mafia" typically refers to either the Sicilian Mafia or the Italian-American Mafia and sometimes Italian organized crime in general e.
Today the 'Ndrangheta , originating in the Southern Italian region of Calabria , is widely considered the richest and most powerful mafia in the world.
In reference to a man, mafiusu mafioso in Italian in 19th century Sicily signified "fearless", "enterprising", and "proud", according to scholar Diego Gambetta.
Because Sicily was once an Islamic emirate from to , mafia may have come to Sicilian through Arabic , though the word's origins are uncertain. Possible Arabic roots of the word include:. The public's association of the word with the criminal secret society was perhaps inspired by the play I mafiusi di la Vicaria "The Mafiosi of the Vicaria" by Giuseppe Rizzotto and Gaspare Mosca. Soon after, the use of the term "mafia" began appearing in the Italian state's early reports on the phenomenon.
