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单词 omertà
释义

omertàn.

Brit. /ˌəʊmɛːˈtɑː/, U.S. /ˌoʊmɛrˈtɑ/, /oʊˈmərdə/
Forms: 1800s– omerta, 1900s– omertà. Also with capital initial.
Origin: A borrowing from Italian. Etymon: Italian omertà.
Etymology: < Italian omertà (1865 or earlier), further origin uncertain and disputed.The Italian word is probably not of Sicilian origin, as shown by its phonology (unstressed e and o do not normally occur in Sicilian dialects). Most scholars interpret it as an alteration of Spanish hombredad manliness (13th cent., now rare; < hombre man (see hombre n.) + -edad -ity suffix) after Italian regional (Sicily) omu man (see homo n.1). The alternative explanation as a regional variant (compare Italian regional (Naples) umertà ) of Italian umiltà humility n. (with allusion to the Mafia code which enjoins submission of the group to the leader as well as silence on all Mafia concerns) is not well supported by the geographical distribution of the word.
1. A Mafia code of honour which demands absolute loyalty to the organization and silence about its activities, esp. refusal to give evidence of criminal activity to the police.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > social relations > an association, society, or organization > secret society > [noun] > other secret societies > principles of other secret societies
Ribandism1820
Ribbonism1820
omertà1864
Mafiaism1927
society > law > administration of justice > court proceedings or procedure > evidence > [noun] > action of giving evidence > refusal to give evidence (by mafia)
omertà1864
1864 National Rev. Jan. 46 Of late in Sicily the ‘omertà’ (or fear of bearing witness) is so strong as to make even the sufferers by a crime the shelterers of the criminal.
1887 Littell's Living Age 17 Dec. 678/2 The code of Omerta says: ‘Evidence is good so long as it does not injure your neighbour.’
1909 Evening Sun (N.Y.) 13 May 8/1 There is..the belief that it is unmanly to tell anything about a fellow countryman which could get him into trouble. It is called ‘Omerta’ in the Sicilian tongue, which means manliness.
1965 J. Wainwright Death in Sleeping City ii. vii. 129 They [sc. the Mafia] have a law... It's called the Omerta. It's an unwritten law—a code of conduct, really.
1968 Listener 29 Feb. 268/3 An island [sc. Sardinia] where omerta is stronger than democracy.
1977 Time (Atlantic ed.) 12 Sept. 43/1 The protection program was formally established after passage of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 to hasten the breakdown of omertà, the underworld code of silence.
1991 Sunday Tel. 10 Mar. 20/4 Divorced from certain values comradeship degenerates into omerta, the Mafia code of unconditional loyalty with no questions asked.
2. In extended use: a code of silence, esp. about clandestine or criminal activity; a refusal to talk openly about something.
ΚΠ
1975 Jrnl. Asian Stud. 34 856/1 Lansdale's omerta about his work for the CIA.
1978 Washington Post 27 Apr. a22/2 They [sc. extreme leftists] cover the terrorists... They even serve as couriers for them... There is a certain omerta surrounding terrorism.
1987 Sunday Tel. 19 July 20/4 Corruption remains a grave problem in the Met, as does a deeper form of corruption, the omertà which seals all lips.
2000 Daily Tel. 7 Nov. 19 The company devoted the whole evening of live television to breaking what it describes as the ‘omertà’ surrounding mad cow disease.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2004; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1864
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更新时间:2025/2/3 15:39:09