Yet the names mafia and Cosa Nostra, owing to their peculiar combination of precision and vagueness, are relatively difficult to pirate. They denote a specific ethnic type which is not easy to counterfeit: if a tall blond with freckles and a Norwegian accent announces that he is a mafioso, we are not likely to be impressed. In Italy the same announcement made in a Piedmontese accent would not strike fear. In Sicily itself, where everybody has the "right" combination of ethnic features, mafiosi when making threatening phone calls accentuate their Palermo accent (Falcone and Padovani 1991: 56).

XREF: Connects to the broader discussion about piracy and identity in the source, and to the sociology of authenticity and performance.

Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Busi…, loc. 367