La Santa
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''La Santa'' is a secret society within 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 ...
'', a
criminal organisation Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While o ...
in
Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
(
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
). The name probably derives from the shortening of '' mamma santissima''.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', pp. 114-16 In mafia slang, the expression is used to refer to mafia chiefs. ''Mamma santissima'' literally means "most holy mother" and refers to the
Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
, who is regarded as the protector of the 'Ndrangheta.Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods'', p. 238 The Santa was an innovation in the traditional
stratification Stratification may refer to: Mathematics * Stratification (mathematics), any consistent assignment of numbers to predicate symbols * Data stratification in statistics Earth sciences * Stable and unstable stratification * Stratification, or st ...
of the 'Ndrangheta introduced in the early 1970s to maximize the power and invisibility of the most important bosses. Security concerns led to the creation of a secret society within the secret society. Membership in the ''Santa'' is only known to other members. Contrary to the 'Ndrangheta code, it allowed bosses to establish close connections with state representatives, even to the extent that some were affiliated with the ''Santa''. These connections were often established through the
Freemasonry Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
, which the ''santisti'' – breaking another rule of the traditional code – were allowed to join.Review of: Paoli, ''Mafia Brotherhoods''
/ref> The rank of ''santista'' was established at the end of the 1960s by
Girolamo Piromalli Girolamo Piromalli (October 7, 1918 – February 11, 1979), also known as ''Mommo'', was an Italian mobster and member of the 'Ndrangheta. He was capobastone (head of command) of the Piromalli 'ndrina based in his home town Gioia Tauro on the ...
, leader of the Piromalli family in
Gioia Tauro Gioia Tauro () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria (Italy), on the Tyrrhenian coast. It has an important port, situated along the route connecting Suez to Gibraltar, one of the busiest maritime corridors in t ...
, and by the chiefs of several other families. They were eager to modify the traditional rules of the 'Ndrangheta in order to enter the public works market and start illegal activities such as drug
trafficking Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...
, which were prohibited by the 'Ndrangheta’s traditional code but promised to be very profitable. According to
Gaetano Costa Gaetano Costa (; Caltanissetta, 1 March 1916 - Palermo, 6 August 1980) was an Italian magistrate killed by the Cosa Nostra. Chief Prosecutor of Palermo, he was assassinated by the Mafia on 6 August 1980 while browsing books on a stall located ...
(the former boss of the Messina
'ndrina The 'ndrina (, plural: ; , plural: ) is the basic unit of the 'Ndrangheta of Calabria, made up of blood relatives, and is the equivalent of the Sicilian Mafia’s "family" or ''cosca''.Varese, How Mafias Migrate'Gratteri & Nicaso ''Fratelli di ...
), "it was Mommo Piromalli who – given the enormous interests which the existed in the
Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
area (the railroad stump, the steelwork centre, and the port in Gioia Tauro, etc.) – entrusted himself with the rank of ''santista'', in order to assert his higher authority and hence directly control the public works. He said that this rank had been given him directly in Toronto, where there was a very important 'ndrina." It was precisely on account of these innovations that the new institution was opposed by the more traditionalist bosses, such as
Antonio Macrì Antonio Macrì (; – January 20, 1975), popularly known as ("Unca Tony"), was a historical and charismatic boss of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal and mafia-type organisation in Calabria, Italy. He was born in Siderno on the Ionian Sea, Ionian coast ...
from the Ionic town of
Siderno Siderno ( scn, label= Calabrian, Sidernu or ; ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy, about 3 kilometres from Locri. Some notable people from Siderno are Marco stalteri, Patrizia lunch ...
, the 'Ndrangheta’s charismatic leader of the 1960s, and
Domenico Tripodo Domenico Tripodo (; − August 26, 1976) was an Italians, Italian criminal and a historical and charismatic boss of the 'Ndrangheta dominating the city of Reggio Calabria and the surrounding areas. Also known as Don Mico Tripodo he was one of the ...
, who was the dominant figure of the Reggio Calabria clans. Only at the end of the so-called
First 'Ndrangheta war The First 'Ndrangheta war was an internal struggle in the 'Ndrangheta, a Mafia-type criminal organisation in Calabria (southern Italy). The conflict raged from 1974 to 1977 and resulted in approximately 233 deaths.Dickie, ''Mafia Republic: Italy's ...
, which took place in 1974-76 and led to their deaths and the consequent rise of the De Stefano brothers as the new leaders of the Reggio Calabria 'Ndrangheta, was the new institution fully recognized. The ''Santa'' was originally set up as an exclusive body restricted to 33 people. Only when a santista died another member was allowed to enter it. As the years went by, an inflation took place in assigning the status of ''santista''. Around 1978, a new higher rank was established: the '' vangelo''. Later this was followed by the institution of the position of '' trequartino'' (three-quarters) or ''quintino'' (fifth). Finally, the current highest rank of '' associazione'' (society) was established – reserved for the supreme bosses of the 'Ndrangheta.'Ndrangheta 2005
Nisio Palmieri, ''Dossier della Fondazione Cesar e dell’Associazione Sicurstrada per conto della Consulta Nazionale dei Consigli Regionali Unipol Assicurazioni.''


Notable ''Santisti''

*
Girolamo Piromalli Girolamo Piromalli (October 7, 1918 – February 11, 1979), also known as ''Mommo'', was an Italian mobster and member of the 'Ndrangheta. He was capobastone (head of command) of the Piromalli 'ndrina based in his home town Gioia Tauro on the ...
*
Paolo De Stefano Paolo De Stefano (; died October 13, 1985) was an Italian mobster and member of the 'Ndrangheta who became the undisputed boss of Reggio Calabria. Together with his brothers Giovanni, Giorgio and Orazio he headed the De Stefano 'ndrina. Earl ...
*
Antonio Nirta Antonio Nirta (April 22, 1919 – September 1, 2015) was a boss of the 'Ndrangheta, a Mafia-type organization in Calabria, Italy. Together with his brothers Giuseppe, Francesco and Sebastiano, he ruled San Luca, a stronghold of the 'Ndrangheta. ...
* Giuseppe Nirta * Francesco Nirta *
Natale Iamonte Natale Iamonte (; 7 May 1927 – 2 February 2015), sometimes spelled as Jamonte, was an Italian criminal and a historical boss of the 'Ndrangheta. The Iamonte 'Ndrina is based in Melito di Porto Salvo and Montebello Ionico on the Ionic coast of C ...
*
Santo Araniti Santo Araniti (; born April 25, 1947, in Reggio Calabria) is an Italian criminal and a member of the 'Ndrangheta, a Mafia-type criminal organisation in Calabria. He was a fugitive since 1983 and included in the list of most wanted fugitives in ...
*
Antonio Mammoliti Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular mal ...
* Rocco Gioffrè


References

*Paoli, Letizia (2003). ''Mafia Brotherhoods: Organized Crime, Italian Style'', Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press {{Ndrangheta
Santa Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...
Santa Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...