Black Hand

n. A secret society organized for acts of terrorism and blackmail that was active in the United States in the early 1900s.

Black Hand

n 1. (Historical Terms) a group of Sicilian blackmailers and terrorists formed in the 1870s and operating in the US in the early 20th century 2. (Historical Terms) (in 19th-century Spain) an organization of anarchists

Black′ Hand′

n. a secret criminal group organized in Italy practicing blackmail and violence.

Thesaurus

Noun

Black Hand - a secret terrorist society in the United States early in the 20th centuryact of terrorism, terrorism, terrorist act - the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling feargangdom, gangland, organized crime - underworld organizations

Black Hand

Black Hand,

symbol and name for a criminal and terroristic secret society, and especially associated with the MafiaMafia
, name given to a number of organized groups of Sicilian brigands in the 19th and 20th cent. Unlike the Camorra in Naples, the Mafia had no hierarchic organization; each group operated on its own.
..... Click the link for more information. and the CamorraCamorra
, Italian secret criminal association in Naples. Of controversial origin, it first came to light in 1830. Its activities spread by intimidation, blackmail, and bribery until Naples was controlled by it.
..... Click the link for more information. . The Black Hand flourished in Sicily in the late 19th cent., and in the United States it was especially active in New York City at the beginning of the 20th cent. It is estimated that at one time 90% of New York City's Italian population was blackmailed by letters threatening death and marked with a black hand. Famous incidents associated with the Black Hand include the murder (1890) in New Orleans of chief of police Daniel Hennessy and the shooting (1909), in Palermo, Italy, of Lt. Joseph Petrosino of the New York City police.

Black Hand,

the sobriquet for the Mafia. [Am. Hist.: NCE, 1657]See: Gangsterism

Black Hand

Black Hand

Black Hand

Black′ Hand′

Black Hand

Black Hand,

Black Hand,

Black Hand

Words related to Black Hand

noun a secret terrorist society in the United States early in the 20th century

Related Words