Members are organized under the supervision of capidecina, who oversee their "military" operations and mediate their relationship with the boss of the family. The term capidecina derives from dieci, "ten," suggesting that each would be in charge of ten men. This is a purely symbolic division, however; some families are too small to have ten members, while others, such as the Bontade family, permit a more democratic relationship with the boss (TC: 23). According to the testimony of Antonino Calderone: "It is not possible to have a direct relationship between the man of honor and the rappresentante unmediated by the intervention of the capodecina. In some areas such as Palermo, however, there are families in which the men of honor report directly to the rappresentante; they are his most absolutely trustworthy men and are usually given the most sensitive and secret tasks" (AC: III, 738; also Arlacchi 1992: 160).

DEFINE: Clarifies the term capidecina, deriving from dieci ('ten'), while noting the division is purely symbolic.

Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Busi…, loc. 285