Community Corner

It's Friday the 13th Again!

Superstitions persist for many who consider this an unlucky day.

Didn't we already have a Friday the 13th? Yes, January 13th was the first, and after today there's one more to look forward to in 2012, the next is in July.

Why is Friday the 13th considered unlucky? Blame it on superstitions that have been handed down for centuries.

For hundreds of years the fear of Friday the 13th has haunted many who consider it just a downright unlucky day. Studies show that some people even go so far as to alter their plans for the day, choosing to avoid flying in an airplane, buying or selling stocks or even getting out of bed to face the day.

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So just how did all this Friday the 13th superstition get started? According to one theory the superstition was made up of two older superstitions.

In numerology the number 12 is considered the number of completeness, as evidence the 12 months of the year, 12 hours of the clock, 12 gods of Olympus and so on. The number 13, however, is considered irregular.

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And history has proven there have been numerous reasons why Friday is considered unlucky. And as far back as the 14th century Friday has been thought to be an unlucky day. In Canterbury Tales, some stories depicted bad things happening on this day which helped advance the superstition.

For Christians Friday was considered bad luck because it was the day Jesus was crucified. And of course in the 20th century, Black Friday is forever connected to the great stock market crash on a Friday in 1929.

Others point to the superstition as a modern day invention notiting that references to Friday the 13th are nearly non-existent before 1907 which was the year Thomas W. Lawson's popular novel "Friday, the Thirteeneenth" in which an unsavory broker caused a panic on Wall Street on a Friday the 13th.

Whatever the reason for the superstitions surrounding Friday the 13th, we'll have to deal with them. Try to enjoy the last day of the work week -- but just in case there is any truth to this being an unlucky day, don't walk under any ladders.

Interesting facts:

  • In the Gregorian calendar, which we use today, this day occurs at least once, but at most three times a year.
  • Any month's 13th day will fall on a Friday if the month starts on a Sunday.
  • The fear of Friday the 13th is called friggatriskaidekaphobia. The term was derived from the name of the Norse goddess, Frigga, which is how Friday got its name.
  • In 2011 May is the only month that has a Friday the 13th.
  • In 2012, three months will have a Friday the 13th, January, April and July.
  • Many buildings even today, do not have a 13th floor.


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