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The Mafia The Mafia originated in Sicily, about 1,000 years ago. Sicily, an island located southwest of Rome in the Mediterranean, was constantly being invaded by Arabs, Europeans, and bloodthirsty pirates. Rome stood by and did nothing to protect the peasant farmers who inhabited the island. Their conquerors treated the Sicilians harshly and were usually turned into slaves. They were forced to turn inward, exhibiting a fierce independence and self-reliance. These people came to believe that only fellow Sicilians, especially their own family, were the only people who could be trusted. This group of people distrusted and feared the government, and their faith was placed in blood relatives. They never forgot that government was the enemy and that family honor was what truly mattered. A patriotic society formed from the Sicilian’s hatred for outsiders was known as the Mafia. The origin of the word Mafia is uncertain but there are three possibilities. The first one dates back to the ninth century. It said that when the Sicilian farmers fled into the hillsides to seek refuge from the vicious Arab invaders, the runaways were referred to as Mafia-meaning “place of refuge” (Feder 9) in Arabic. The second story state