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From Italianomertà – even though a further etymology is disputed – italianization of Sicilianumirtà(“the quality of being humble, quiet, soft”). Some see it as a southern dialectal variant of umiltà(“humility”), from Latinhumilitās, from humilis(“humble”), from humus(“ground, soil”), in which case it is a doublet of humility. Other sources (as the OED) interpret it as a Sicilian calque (loan translation) of Spanishhombredad(“manliness”), altered to fit Sicilianomu(“man”); in this latter case though “ummirità” should be the natural phonological output.
Patriarca pleaded guilty in December 1991 to racketeering and conspiracy charges, but he refused to admit he was a member of the Mafia, clinging to his vow of ‘omerta’ to the secret organization.
2006 October 27, Los Angeles Times:
There was a time that high-profile killings such as the 1968 assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. brought passionate cries for limitations on handguns. A bipartisan omerta now smothers the issue.
2016 October, “How the FDA Manipulates the Media”, in Scientific American:
The FDA was not pleased that the omertà had been broken.
2023 October 6, Heather Stewart, quoting Sadiq Khan, “‘Choose London’: Sadiq Khan steps up efforts to lure EU citizens post-Brexit”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
Despite criticising what he called an “omertà” in British politics about Brexit, he expressed some sympathy for the Labour leader Keir’s wariness about the issue.
2024 February 21, Kim Willsher, quoting Judith Godrèche, “Judith Godrèche to address French cinema’s ‘omertà’ around #MeToo”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
Judith Godrèche, an actor who has accused two high-profile directors of raping her as a teenager, will address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony on Friday in an unusual move aimed at breaking what she calls the “omertà” surrounding the abuse of women and girls in the industry.
Ultimately, a doublet of umiltati(“humility, humbleness”). Possibly borrowed, or at least influenced, from Italianomertà, itself from Neapolitan. Possibly later reanalyzed by mafiosi as deriving from omu(“man”), thus implying that people who are not reticent are not men, thus cowards.