Why is Friday the 13th cursed? or not

Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition. It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday, which can be the case at least once every year, and up to three times a year in some cases.

There will be two Friday the 13ths per year until 2020, where 2021 and 2022 will have just one occurrence.

The fear of the number 13 has been given a scientific name, ‘triskaidekaphobia’; and on analogy to this the fear of Friday the 13th is called ‘paraskevidekatriaphobia’, from the Greekwords Paraskeví, meaning ‘Friday’, and dekatreís, meaning ‘thirteen’.

One option is to stay tucked up in bed all day to avoid any potential Friday the 13th bad luck that may come your way or, alternatively, you could ignore the superstitious chatter and embrace it.

Social impact

According to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, an estimated 17 to 21 million people in the United States are affected by a fear of this day, making it the most feared day and date in history. Some people are so paralysed by fear that they avoid their normal routines in doing business, taking flights or even getting out of bed.

Rate of accidents

A study in the British Medical Journal, published in 1993, concluded that there is a significant level of traffic-related incidences on Friday the 13th as opposed to a random day.

However, the Dutch Centre for Insurance Statistics on 12 June 2008 stated that fewer accidents and reports of fire and theft occur when the 13th of the month falls on a Friday than on other Fridays, because people are preventatively more careful or just stay home.

In the Netherlands, driving is slightly safer on Friday the 13th. Dutch insurers received reports of an average 7,800 traffic accidents each Friday; but the average figure when the 13th fell on a Friday was just 7,500.

Biblical origins

Some historians have claimed it was the day on which Eve bit the apple from the Tree of Knowledge, the great flood began and the builders of the Tower of Babel.

In the New Testament there were 13 people present for Jesus’s last supper on Maundy Thursday, the day before Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday.

Dan Brown’s novel

In his novel Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown cites the 14th century execution of Templar Grand Master Jacques de Molay, which took place on Friday the 13th. He cursed the Pope and the King of France, and this spread misfortune down the ages.

Bad things that have happened on Friday 13th

• In 1976, New Yorker Daz Baxter was apparently so afraid of Friday the 13th he decided the safest place to stay was his bed. Mr Baxter was killed when the floor of his apartment block collapsed that day.
• In 2009, the £13.5 million SAW ride at Thorpe Park had its opening premiere, only to be shut down due to a computer programming fault. Spooky.
• In 2010, lightning struck a 13-year-old Suffolk boy on Friday 13th at 13:13.
• During the early 1990s retired bus conductor Bob Renphrey also vowed to stay in bed on the superstitious day after some seriously bad luck. The Welshman has crashed fours cars, fallen into a river and been made redundant on previous Friday the 13ths.

A numbers’ game

The number 12 – seen as the number of completeness – can be found in many different aspects of our lives.

There are 12 months of the year, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 hours of the clock, 12 tribes of Israel, 12 Apostles of Jesus, 12 Descendants of Muhammad Imams, among many incidences of the pattern historically.

The number 13 has been considered unlucky for many years, even before Christ (and his 12 apostles). The number 12 is historically considered the number of completeness, while 13 has been seen as an outlier.

Houses often do not have a number 13, and many hotels miss out a 13th floor.

It is considered very unlucky for 13 people to dine together, and the first to rise will reach serious misfortune – a superstition upheld by US President Roosevelt. He also refused to travel on Friday the 13th.

Why Friday the 13th creates bargains – and how to take advantage

Flying on Friday 13th

Over the past few years it has emerged that the cost of air travel does indeed fall on the spooky date that comes round once or twice a year – with the savings attributed to a collective fear of flying on the unluckiest day of the year.

Buying or selling a home

The number of property transactions decline on Friday 13.

The worst day was May 13 2011, when there were 51 per cent fewer transactions. Ironically, these transactions are likely to run more smoothly given that the staff handling them, in solicitors firms and banks, will have more time on their hands.

Property bargains are more likely to relate to houses or flats numbered 13. Number 13 houses are not that common – only 28 per cent of streets have one.

Is Friday the 13th really that bad?

It may be the day that everyone dreads, but what about the good things that have happened on this inauspicious date?

Here are a few:

• The weekend is nearly here: After every Friday 13th, comes a Saturday 14th, which can only mean one thing: the weekend is nearly upon us!
• First nudist colony founded in UK: Britons were allowed to let it all hang out when the North Devon Club in Metherell opened on Friday 13 June, 1930.
• Hollywood arrived: The Hollywood sign – which originally read HOLLYWOODLAND – was unveiled on Friday 13 July, 1923. It was built to advertise a housing development, but has since become one of the world’s biggest tourist attractions.

Information supplied by The Telegraph and Wikipedia.

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