In many Western countries, Friday the 13th is believed to be a day of bad luck.
There are many reasons why Friday is considered to be unlucky. For example it is assumed to be the day that Jesus Christ was crucified, it is thought to be the day that the flood in the time of Noah started, and it is taken to be the day that the snake tempted Eve in the garden of Eden. For many people it is also the day before the Sabbath and so it was considered a day when witches would come out.
There are also stories to explain why 13 is considered to be an unlucky number. One of these is that there were 13 people, Jesus and his 12 disciples, at the Last Supper. Another suggestion is from Norse mythology: there was a banquet of 12 gods and Loki the god of trickery and mischief gatecrashed, making 13 guests. While he was there he tricked the blind god Höd into killing Baldur the god of joy, who was a great favourite amongst the gods.
Nobody knows for sure how these two unlucky times, Friday and 13th, became combined to make Friday 13th a particularly unlucky day, but there is no record of this day being considered especially unlucky before the 19th century.
Nevertheless this day is considered so unlucky that some people have a natural fear of it and there is even a word meaning fear of Friday the 13th – paraskevidekatriaphobia! People who suffer from this are often too scared to leave the house on this day. This week we have the only Friday 13th of 2016, so if you believe that Friday the 13th is unluckier than other days perhaps on Friday you would be better to stay at home and make sure you don’t break any mirrors!
Related post: Tuesday 13th and Friday 17th
