Jump to content
Live Update

La Cosa Nostra Terminology


Sorrano

Recommended Posts


  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  36
  • Reputation:   42
  • Joined:  09/11/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  
  • Age:  24

La Cosa Nostra Terminology

 

(For you supposed modern LCN experts this list isn’t to be taken seriously as the official terminology but rather a collective of terms that have been present within the American LCN throughout the years and should be used in the correct appropriate manner.)

 

Associate: an almost-there; someone who works with and for wiseguys, but who hasn't been sworn in as a member of the Family.

Beef: a complaint or disagreement within the organization, usually discussed during a sit-down with higher-ups in the Family.

Big earner: someone who makes a lot of money for the Family. A LOT of money.

Books: the euphemism for membership in the Family, since nothing is ever written down. When there is an availability (when someone dies), the books are "opened." When no one is being "made," the books are "closed."

Boss: the head of the crime Family; he is the only one who gives permission to "whack" or "make" someone, and he makes money from all Family operations; synonyms: don, chairman. 

Broken: demoted in rank; "knocked down." 

Button: a "made" member of the Mafia; soldier, wiseguy, goodfella, Man of Honor.

Capo/Caporegime: a high ranking member of a Family who heads a crew (or group) of soldiers; a skipper, short for capodecina.

Clip: to murder; see burn.. 

Commission,: the Mafia "ruling body", typically a panel made up of the bosses of the five New York Families, Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Colombo, and Bonanno sometimes with representatives from other U.S. Families, such as Chicago. 

Consigliere: the counsellor in a crime Family; advises boss and handles disputes within the ranks. 

Cosa Nostra/La Cosa Nostra: Italian for "this thing of ours," a mob family, the Mafia. 

Crew: a group of soldiers that takes orders from a capo. 

Do a piece of work: to murder; see burn.

Earner: someone whose expertise is making money for the Family. 

Enforcer: a person who threatens, maims, or kills someone who doesn't cooperate with Family rules or deals. 

Friend of mine: introduction of a third person who is not a member of the Family but who can be vouched for by a Family member. 

Friend of ours: introduction of one made member to another. 

Going: about to be whacked. 

Going south: stealing, passing money under the table, going on the lam. 

Going to the mattresses/Hitting the, Taking to the: to go to war, using ruthless tactics without restraint.

Hot place: a location suspected of being the target of law enforcement or surveillance. 

Ice: to murder; see burn. 

Joint: prison synonyms: the can, the pen. 

Loanshark: someone who lends mob money at an exorbitant interest rate; a shylock but can be referenced as a shy business. 

Made: to be sworn into La Cosa Nostra; synonyms: to be "straightened out," to get your button. 

Make one’s bones: gain credibility by killing someone.

Mattresses, hitting the, taking to the: going to war with a rival Family or gang. 

Message job: placing the bullet in someone's body such that a specific message is sent to that person's crew or family; see through the eye and through the mouth.

Mock execution: to whip someone into shape by frightening them.

Omertá: the code of silence and one of the premier vows taken when being sworn into the Family. Violation is punishable by death. 

Off the record: an action taken without the knowledge or approval of the Family. 

On the record: an action sanctioned by the Family.

Piece: a gun. 

Pinched: arrested. 

Pop: to murder; see burn. 

Points: percent of income; cut.

Problem: A liability, someone likely to be whacked. 

Rat: a member who violates Omertá; synonyms: squealer, canary, snitch, stool pigeon, yellow dog. 

Shylock: loansharking.

Sit-down: a meeting with the Family administration to settle disputes. 

Skim: Tax-free gambling profits, as in the money taken that is not reported to the IRS. 

Skipper: a capo. 

Stand-up guy: someone who refuses to rat out the Family no matter what the pressure, offer, or threat. 

This Thing of Ours (La Cosa Nostra): a mob family, or the entire mob.

Vig: the interest payment on a loan from a loanshark (short for “vigorish"). Synonym: juice. 

Vouch for: to personally guarantee--with one's life--the reputation of someone dealing with the Family. 

Whack: to murder; see burn. 

Zips: American Mafiosi's derogatory term for Italian Mafiosi which is usually used as a light sarcastic phrase rather than an insult.

  • Like 6
  • Insightful 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  76
  • Reputation:   20
  • Joined:  10/14/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  

All wrong.

Just as an FYI, New York's organized crime families / Italian mafia isn't call La Costra Nostra, it's the Five Families. You know them from GTA IV as Gambetti, Ancelotti, Messina, Pavano and Lupisella who form "The Commission" which is also what The Five Families used to call themselves. 

 

spacer.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  36
  • Reputation:   42
  • Joined:  09/11/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  
  • Age:  24

On 11/21/2020 at 1:47 PM, PotatoHeadz35 said:

Just as an FYI, New York's organized crime families / Italian mafia isn't call La Costra Nostra, it's the Five Families. You know them from GTA IV as Gambetti, Ancelotti, Messina, Pavano and Lupisella who form "The Commission" which is also what The Five Families used to call themselves. 

  • La Cosa Nostra - The term cosa nostra, which is sometimes translated from Italian to mean "our thing," originally referred to the general lifestyle of organized criminals in Sicily. When the Mafia moved to the United States, FBI agents listening in on wiretaps heard the term. They began using the term La Cosa Nostra (which is grammatically incorrect) to refer to the Mafia. In time, La Cosa Nostra referred specifically to American Mafioso, differentiating them from "old world" mobsters.

the sopranos smoking GIF

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  20
  • Reputation:   12
  • Joined:  09/13/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  

I am Italian and this topic is completely fucked up lol

  • Like 1
  • Haha 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  36
  • Reputation:   42
  • Joined:  09/11/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  
  • Age:  24

On 12/4/2020 at 8:38 AM, Mikee said:

I am Italian and this topic is completely fucked up lol

Just because you’re Italian doesn’t make you an insider on mob life or a native New Yorker. Lol. 
Italy is very different compared to Italian American culture in Northern America. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Followers:  1
  • Content Count:  20
  • Reputation:   31
  • Joined:  09/12/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  

Well, if someone finds a mistake in a guide. They could point the things, that they would deem false, out. That way people could discuss if something is right or not. :)  If you find a mistake in a guide or anywhere else, you could just try and PM the topic's owner about it.

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Followers:  0
  • Content Count:  36
  • Reputation:   42
  • Joined:  09/11/2020
  • Status:  Offline
  • Last Seen:  
  • Age:  24

On 12/7/2020 at 3:29 PM, AK12Kleiza said:

Well, if someone finds a mistake in a guide. They could point the things, that they would deem false, out. That way people could discuss if something is right or not. 🙂 If you find a mistake in a guide or anywhere else, you could just try and PM the topic's owner about it.

Exactly. Though I will make this clear again for everyone else, Italian American dialect is very different compared to the original Italian vernacular. Especially LCN terms because the American organization is not the same as the one in Italy. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...