Kosher Nostra

9.9

A group of Jewish American criminals who worked together in organized crime in the early 1900s

noun
/ˈkoʊʃər ˈnɔstrə/

Slur

: [ofensivo] Kosher Nostra

The documentary traced the history of the Kosher Nostra in New York during the 1920s.

Examples

Some historians argue that the influence of the Kosher Nostra has often been exaggerated in popular culture.
She was researching figures connected to the Kosher Nostra for her latest crime novel.
The Kosher Nostra was notorious for its influence in New York.
Many documentaries explore the history of the Kosher Nostra.
The documentary traced the history of the Kosher Nostra in New York during the 1920s.
Some historians argue that the influence of the Kosher Nostra has often been exaggerated in popular culture.
Many documentaries explore the history of the Kosher Nostra.

Surface Forms

Kosher Nostra singular

Kosher Nostras plural

Morphology

kosher + Nostra

Even though 'kosher' suggests Jewishness or legitimacy, the second element 'Nostra' is a cultural/Italian borrowing (from 'Cosa Nostra') that B1 learners are unlikely to know. The term is a punical, culturally specific label for Jewish organized crime, so its overall meaning cannot be transparently derived from the constituent words without prior cultural or lexical knowledge.

Etymology

Kosher Nostra is a play on words that mixes kosher (Jewish food rules) with Cosa Nostra (the name of the Italian Mafia). Because it brings to mind a Mafia-style group with a Jewish background, the phrase is used to mean 'organized crime groups' of Jewish Americans.