Why do we fear Friday 13th? Or even just saying the word Friggatriskaidekaphobia

Do you suffer from Friggatriskaidekaphobia, nan fearfulness of Friday 13th?

You're not alone.

It’s 1 of nan astir pervasive superstitions successful Western culture, alongside crossing a achromatic feline aliases stepping nether a ladder.

It's estimated betwixt 17 and 21 cardinal group successful nan United States are actively affected by Friggatriskaidekaphobia – named aft Frigga, nan Norse goddess aft whom ‘Friday’ is named successful English – aliases ‘triskaidekaphobia’, nan fearfulness of nan number 13.

Some group garbage to fly, aliases adjacent a business woody connected this date, while others garbage to time off nan house. Some buildings skip nan 13th floor, going from 12 consecutive to 14, location are meal guests who garbage to eat astatine a array pinch 13 guests, and location are airlines which do not person a statement 13.

But why is nan number and day considered truthful unlucky?

Uninvited guests, numerology and Jason

The origins of Friggatriskaidekaphobia (or paraskevidekatriaphobia successful immoderate quarters), arsenic pinch astir superstitions, are reliable to pinpoint.

The conception of nan cursed number tin spell backmost to Norse mythology.

According to Viking myth, 12 gods were having a banquet successful Valhalla. A 13th, uninvited impermanent known arsenic Loki – nan deity of mischief – arrived, and deceived Hodr, nan unsighted deity of darkness, into shooting Balder nan Beautiful, nan deity of joyousness and gladness, pinch a mistletoe-tipped arrow.

The superstition past dispersed southbound passim Europe, becoming established by nan commencement of nan Christian era.

Then came nan communicative of different meal party: nan Last Supper, which was attended by Jesus Christ and his disciples. The 13th impermanent was nary different than Judas Iscariot, nan disciple who betrayed Jesus, starring to his crucifixion connected Good Friday.

Going backmost moreover further successful Biblical tradition, Friday is said to beryllium nan time that Adam and Eve ate nan forbidden consequence from nan Tree of Knowledge, arsenic good arsenic nan time Cain murdered his brother, Abel.

Beyond story and religion, for galore nan number 13 suffers simply because it comes aft nan number 12.

Numerologists see 12 a “complete number”: location are 12 months successful nan year; 12 hours of nan clock; and 12 signs of nan Zodiac; 12 labors of Hercules; 12 gods of Olympus… The number 13 is irregular by comparison.

As for Friday, galore judge that it has been an unlucky time since nan 14th-century publication of Chaucer’s "The Canterbury Tales": “And connected a Friday fell each this mischance.”

Fast guardant a fewer millennia and celebrated civilization has not helped successful immoderate way: Thomas William Lawson’s 1907 caller "Friday, nan Thirteenth" tells nan communicative of a stockbroker who creates chaos connected Wall Street; nan German bombing of Buckingham Palace took spot connected Friday 13 September 1940; nan ill-fated Apollo 13 satellite mission; nan Friday 13th films, pinch hockey-masked slayer Jason Voorhees slashing to his heart’s content…

All person contributed to giving nan day a bad rep.

But immoderate countries would disagree.

European variations

In Hispanic and Greek culture, Tuesday 13th is traditionally considered an unlucky day.

In Greece, Tuesday is nan time associated pinch Ares nan deity of war, and Greek sanction for ‘Tuesday’ is ‘Triti’, aliases ‘third’, heightening nan superstition, since bad luck supposedly comes successful groups of three.

Add nan truth that Constantinople fell some times connected a Tuesday - successful 1204 during nan Fourth Crusade, and successful 1453 to nan Ottomans - and you’ve sewage yourself a cursed day.

In Italy, nan number 13 is really considered lucky, and it’s Friday 17th that has nan bad reputation.

The relationship betwixt nan number 17 and bad luck is goes backmost to nan Roman numerals for 17, XVII. When rearranged, it creates nan connection VIXI, which translates arsenic “I person lived”, nan past tense which implies death.

Consequently, Alitalia, nan country's airline, does not characteristic statement 17 connected its planes.

Hooray for Pagans (and Taylor Swift)

Both Fridays and nan number 13 haven’t ever been unlucky.

Organised religions and misogyny silenced paganism and nan ceremony of women passim nan centuries, thereby starring to nan communicative of Friday 13th arsenic an unlucky date.

In pagan times, Friday was believed to person a unsocial relation pinch nan divine feminine – which loops america backmost to Friggatriskaidekaphobia. As immoderate discerning mythology master aliases Marvel instrumentality will show you, Frigga was nan Queen of Asgard and a powerful entity goddess, 1 who was associated pinch emotion and motherhood and who could prophesize fertility.

Therefore, Friday was considered a fortunate time for matrimony by Norse and Teutonic people.

Regarding nan number 13, it was a harbinger of bully luck for pre-Christian and goddess-worshipping cultures because of its nexus to nan number of lunar and menstrual cycles that hap successful a almanac year.

And past comes US nationalist wealth Taylor Swift, who ended 2024 connected a precocious aft her record-smashing world tour brought successful $2.2 cardinal successful its astir two-year run, making it nan highest-grossing circuit of each time for a 2nd twelvemonth successful a row.

Doesn't sound very unlucky, does it? Be we digress...

Swift considers 13 her fortunate number and, early successful her career, often performed pinch nan number written connected her hand.

"I was calved connected nan 13th. I turned 13 connected Friday 13th. My first medium went golden successful 13 weeks. My first No. 1 1 opus had a 13-second intro," she told MTV successful 2009.

"Every clip I've won an grant I've been seated successful either nan 13th seat, nan 13th row, nan 13th conception aliases statement M, which is nan 13th letter. Basically, whenever a 13 comes up successful my life, it's a bully thing."

Maybe nan bequest of Friday 13th tin beryllium rewritten… Just travel TayTay's illustration and laughter successful nan look of danger.

After all, it thumps trying to pronounce Friggatriskaidekaphobia.

Good luck pinch that.