The 'ndrina (, plural: ; , plural: ) is the basic unit of the

'Ndrangheta The 'Ndrangheta (, , ) is a prominent Italian Mafia-type organized crime syndicate and secret society, criminal society based in the peninsular and mountainous region of Calabria and dating back to the late 18th century. It is considered one of ...

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, made up of blood relatives, and is the equivalent of the

Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sicily a ...

’s "family" or ''

cosca A ''cosca'' (; pl. ''cosche'' in Italian and ''coschi'' in Sicilian), in Sicily, is a clan or Sicilian Mafia crime family led by a capo. The equivalent in the 'Ndrangheta in Calabria is the ndrina''. Etymology A ''cosca'' is the crown of s ...

''.Varese,
How Mafias Migrate
'Gratteri & Nicaso ''Fratelli di sangue''
p. 27
/ref>Nicaso & Danesi, ''Made Men''
p. 23
/ref> The word derives from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

, meaning "a man who does not bend". Each '' 'ndrina'' is "autonomous on its territory and no formal authority stands above the '' 'ndrina'' boss." The '' 'ndrina'' is usually in control of a small town or a neighbourhood in larger cities, even outside Calabria, in cities and towns in the industrial North of Italy in and around

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

and

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. If more than one '' 'ndrina'' operates in the same town, they form a '' locale'', the main local organizational unit of the 'Ndrangheta with

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

over an entire town or an area in a large urban center.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', p. 29-30 In some cases, sub-'' 'ndrine'' have been established. The '' 'ndrine'' enjoy a high degree of autonomy – they have a leader (the

capobastone The Capobastone is a high-ranking 'Ndrangheta who is in charge of a 'ndrina. It is the Calabrian equivalent for the Sicilian ''Capomandamento''. Rule In a 'ndrina, the Capobastone make the most important decisions, and report only at the "Capo ...

) and independent staff. In some contexts the '' 'ndrine'' have become more powerful than the ''locale'' on which they formally depend. Blood family and membership of the crime family overlap to a great extent within the 'Ndrangheta. By and large, the '' 'ndrine'' consist of men belonging to the same family lineage under the command of the capobastone.

Salvatore Boemi Salvatore may refer to: * Salvatore (name), a given name and surname, including a list of people with the name * "Salvatore" (song), by Lana Del Rey, 2015 * Salvatore (band), a Norwegian instrumental rock band * '' Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams' ...

, Anti-mafia prosecutor in Reggio Calabria, told the Italian

Antimafia Commission The Italian parliamentary Antimafia Commission ( it, Commissione parlamentare antimafia) is a bicameral commission of the Italian Parliament, composed of members from the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The first commission, formed in 1963, wa ...

that "one becomes a member for the simple fact of being born in a mafia family," although other reasons might attract a young man to seek membership, and non-kin have also been admitted. Marriages help cement relations within each '' 'ndrina'' and to expand membership. As a result, a few blood families constitute each group, hence "a high number of people with the same last name often end up being prosecuted for membership of a given '' 'ndrina''." Indeed, since there is no limit to the membership of a single unit, bosses try to maximize descendants.

References

External links

* Gratteri, Nicola & Antonio Nicaso (2006).
Fratelli di sangue
', Cosenza: Pellegrini Editore, * Nicaso, Antonio & Marcel Danesi (2013).
Made Men: Mafia Culture and the Power of Symbols, Rituals, and Myth
', Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, * Paoli, Letizia (2003).
Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style
', New York: Oxford University Press

by Klaus Von Lampe)

by Alexandra V. Orlova) * Varese, Federico.
How Mafias Migrate: The Case of the 'Ndrangheta in Northern Italy
', Discussion Papers in Economic and Social History, Number 59, University of Oxford, July 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ndrina History of the 'Ndrangheta Organized crime terminology Italian words and phrases