yakuza

/ˈjækuːzə/

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese やくざ (yakuza). See there for more details.

Why this word is great

YAKUZA — [Noun] A member of a Japanese organized crime syndicate or the syndicate itself. From Japanese やくざ (yakuza), originally referring to a losing hand (8-9-3) in the card game oicho-kabu, metaphorically implying 'good for nothing'. Unlike "mafia" (a globalized abstraction of organized crime) or "gokudō" (a romanticized self-conception of outlaw nobility), "yakuza" exists in the tension between ritual and ruthlessness. It is the full-body tattoo concealed beneath a tailored suit, the severed fingertip offered in apology, the precise violence of a tanto blade in a teahouse backroom—a world where codes of honor and codes of law are forever at odds, and where the losing hand still plays the game.

noun

  1. A Japanese organized crime gang.“Japan’s largest yakuza crime syndicate has pledged to end its longstanding war with a rival faction and refrain from causing “trouble,” authorities said, as the mafia-like groups contend with falling membership and increased police crackdowns.”
  2. A member of that Japanese organized crime gang.