Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th occurs when the thirteenth day of a month falls on a Friday, which superstition holds to be a day of bad luck. In the Gregorian calendar, 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.
Phobia
The fear of Friday the 13th is called friggatriskaidekaphobia (Frigga being the name of the Norse goddess for whom "Friday" is named and triskaidekaphobia meaning fear of the number thirteen), or paraskevidekatriaphobia[1][2] a concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (Παρασκευή, meaning "Friday"), and dekatreís (δεκατρείς, meaning "thirteen") attached to phobía (φοβία, from phóbos, φόβος, meaning "fear"). The latter word was derived in 1911[citation needed] and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953.[3]
History
According to folklorists, there is no written evidence for a "Friday the 13th" superstition before the 19th century.[4][5][6] The earliest known documented reference in English occurs in Henry Sutherland Edwards' 1869 biography of Gioachino Rossini:
Rossini was surrounded to the last by admiring and affectionate friends; Why Friday the 13th Is Unlucky
Consequently, several theories have been proposed about the origin of the Friday the 13th superstition.
One theory states that it is a modern amalgamation of two older superstitions: that thirteen is an unlucky number and that Friday is an unlucky day.
- In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve Apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, etc., whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing this completeness. There is also a superstition, thought by some to derive from the Last Supper or a Norse myth, that having thirteen people seated at a table will result in the death of one of the diners.
- Friday has been considered an unlucky day at least since the 14th century's The Canterbury Tales,[3] and many other professions have regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake journeys or begin new projects. Black Friday has been associated with stock market crashes and other disasters since the 1800s.[6][7] It has also been suggested that Friday has been considered an unlucky day because, according to Christian scripture and tradition, Jesus was crucified on a Friday.[8]
A theory by author Charles Panati, one of the leading authorities on the subject of "Origins," maintains that the superstition can be traced back to ancient myth:
The actual origin of the superstition, though, appears also to be a tale in Norse mythology. Friday is named for Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished in shame to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil — a gathering of thirteen — and plotted ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as "Witches' Sabbath."[9]
Another theory about the origin of this superstition traces to the arrest of the legendary Knights Templar.
The Knights Templar were a monastic military order founded in Jerusalem, in the year 1118. Their original mission was to guide and protect Christian pilgrims along the path from Europe to Jerusalem during the Crusades. Through this mission, the Templars developed a banking system to protect the finances of the traveling pilgrims, eventually expanding this banking system throughout their holdings in Europe. Over time, France's Philip IV amassed a substantial debt to the Knights Templar, due to their years of service to the crown. He had nearly depleted his money, from France's ongoing battles with England. In the Knights' rise to power, King Phillip became envious of them, so he set his sights on their famed fortunes. Philip devised a plan to arrest all the Knights in a single day, and charge them with crimes so heinous that no person or group would dare come to their defense. The charges against them were religious in nature, and backed by the papacy of the Vatican and Pope Clement V. His plan was swift and carefully crafted, so as not to alert the Templars in advance.
King Phillip's orders were sent a month in advance to the King's Men and other Bailiffs, with instructions not to open the orders until dawn of Friday, October 13, 1307. The charges against the Templars were of the highest accusations of heresy: that the Knights Templar had asked members to spit on the cross and to step on it, to deny Christ, to perform homosexual acts, and so on. The king's orders were to engage and arrest every Templar in France. All Templar outposts, homes, wineries, mills, and castles were to be taken in the name of the King of France and Pope Clement V. The nationwide arrest was widely successful, with medieval torture tactics used to obtain confessions from the Knights. This act against the Templar Order is now viewed as one of the most unlucky days in History – Friday the 13th.
Following their arrest and confessions, King Phillip attempted to further disgrace the Templars in a public manner. At a large event in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral, he would have Templar Grand Master Jacques De Molay publicly admit to guilt of heresy. Instead, the incarcerated grandmaster took to the forum and apologized to the people – and to the Knights Templar – for his weakness, and for the signing of forced confessions. He rescinded his original confession, and testified to the public that he, his men, and all Knights Templar were innocent, despite their forced confessions. An embarrassed King Phillip was so enraged by the old man's actions as to have him burned at the stake, along with his second-in-command. De Molay's dying last words were to curse King Phillip and Pope Clement V, declaring that by year's end, each would meet his demise. Both men died that year, thus adding to the superstition of the Friday the 13th, and to the notion of the Templars' powers. [4]
The connection between the Friday the 13th superstition and the Knights Templar was popularized in the 2003 novel The Da Vinci Code. However, some experts think that it is a relatively recent correlation and is a modern-day invention.[3][7][10] For example, records of the superstition are rarely found before the 20th century, when it became extremely common. One author, noting that references are all but nonexistent before 1907 but frequently seen thereafter, has argued that its popularity derives from the publication that year of Thomas W. Lawson's popular novel Friday, the Thirteenth,[11] in which an unscrupulous broker takes advantage of the superstition to create a Wall Street panic on a Friday the 13th.[4]
In Spanish-speaking countries, instead of Friday, Tuesday the 13th is considered a day of bad luck, commonly referred to as 'Martes y trece' (Literally translates to: Tuesday and thirteen).[12] The Fall of Constantinople, when the city fell to the Ottomans, marks the end of the Byzantine Empire. It happened on Tuesday, May 29, 1453. That is why the Greeks also consider Tuesday to be an unlucky day. [12]
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. Some people are so paralyzed by fear that they avoid their normal routines in doing business, taking flights or even getting out of bed. "It's been estimated that [US]$800 or $900 million is lost in business on this day".[5] Despite this, representatives for both Delta and Continental Airlines say that their airlines do not suffer from any noticeable drop in travel on those Fridays.[13]
Rate of accidents
There are conflicting studies about the risk of accidents on Friday the 13th. The Dutch Centre for Insurance Statistics (CVS) on June 12, 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. Statistically speaking, driving is slightly safer on Friday the 13th, at least in the Netherlands; in the last two years, 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.[14][15] However, a 1993 study in the British Medical Journal that compared the ratio of traffic accidents between Friday the 6th and Friday the 13th stated that there is a significant increase in traffic-related accidents on Friday the 13th.[3][16] There are indications that there are more accidents on Fridays than average weekdays (irrespective of the date) probably because of alcohol consumption. Therefore it is less relevant for this purpose to compare Friday the 13th with any other 13th day of another month.
Occurrence
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The following months have a Friday the 13th:
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The following years have Fridays the 13th in these months:
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This sequence give here for 2001–2028, follows a 28 year cycle from March 1, 1900 to February 28, 2100. The months with a Friday the 13th are determined by the Dominical letter (G, F, GF, etc.) of the year. Every month that begins on a Sunday will contain a Friday the 13th, and there is at least one Friday the 13th in every calendar year.
The longest period that can occur without a Friday the 13th is fourteen months, either from July to September the following common year (e.g. between 2001–2002, 2012–13, and 2018–2019), or from August to October the following leap year (e.g. between 2027–28).
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Patterns for non-leap years:
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Patterns for leap years:
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Each Gregorian 400-year cycle contains 146,097 days (365 × 400 = 146,000 normal days plus 97 leap days), 146,097 / 7 = 20,871 weeks, and 400 × 12 = 4,800 months. Thus, each cycle contains the same pattern of days of the week (and thus the same pattern of Fridays the 13th), but no day of the month up to the 28th can occur the same number of times on each day of the week (because 4,800 is not divisible by 7). The 13th day of the month is slightly more likely to be a Friday than any other day of the week.[17] On average, there is a Friday the 13th once every 212.35 (212 and 241/688) days.
The distribution of the 13th day over the 4,800 months is as follows:
| Day of the week | Number of occurrences |
|---|---|
| Sunday | 687 |
| Monday | 685 |
| Tuesday | 685 |
| Wednesday | 687 |
| Thursday | 684 |
| Friday | 688 |
| Saturday | 684 |
Planned events on Fridays the 13th
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2009) |
Some events are intentionally scheduled for Friday the 13th for dramatic effect. They include:
- Resident Evil 5 was released in the UK and US on Friday, March 13, 2009.
- SAW - The Ride at Thorpe Park, UK was opened on March 13, 2009. Coincidentally the ride was marred by "teething problems" for the first few days after it was opened[19][20]
- Black Sabbath's eponymous debut album was released in the UK on Friday, February 13, 1970.
- The Opening ceremony of the Athens Olympic Games took place on Friday, August 13, 2004.
- The 13th book in A Series of Unfortunate Events was released on Friday, October 13, 2006 by Lemony Snicket, also known as novelist Daniel Handler.
- Four of the twelve films in the Friday the 13th series, including the most recent (reboot of the series), were released on a Friday the 13th. The sequel to the reboot is planned to be released on Friday, September 13, 2013, however the release date is unknown at this point, due to slow development and companies putting the film on hold. Although a script for the sequel has recently been completed, development is still unknown.
- Joss Whedon's show Dollhouse aired its pilot on February 13, 2009.
- Every Friday the 13th thousands of bikers ride to the small town of Port Dover, Ontario, Canada.
- Boston Lee Day is celebrated every Friday the 13th. Participants gather to enjoy the Boston Lee Drink for which this day is named.[21]
- The popular Browser-based RPGs Dragonfable, AdventureQuest, MechQuest, AQWorlds and WarpForce has an undead war every Friday the 13th.
- Voltaire the goth musician performs live on AQWorlds each Friday 13th on AQWorlds
- The 2009 film 2012 was released on Friday November 13, 2009.
- Stuntman Sam Patch scheduled a 125-foot jump into the Genesee River, USA on Friday, November 13, 1829, his largest jump to date. The jump killed him.[22]
- The Colgate University community celebrates Colgate Day every Friday the 13th by donning Colgate gear and rolling out a number of events across the United States to honor Colgate's historical thirteen men with thirteen dollars and thirteen prayers who founded the University in 1819. [23]
- The online publication TidBITS has named Friday the 13th as "International Verify Your Backups Day" as a way of encouraging people to verify that they can restore data from their backups on what would be the most inauspicious day to lose data. [24]
Events on Friday the 13th
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Due to the large number of events that happen in the world, a similar list could be compiled for any combination of day of the month and day of the week. Events that have been notable for being linked to the concept of Friday the 13th include:
- The renowned rapper Tupac Amaru Shakur was pronounced dead on Friday, September 13, 1996.
- Hurricane Charley made landfall in south Florida on Friday, August 13, 2004.
- The "Friday the 13th Storm" struck Buffalo, New York on Friday, October 13, 2006.
- The Uphaar Cinema fire on Friday, June 13, 1997.
- The asteroid 99942 Apophis will make a close encounter with Earth, closer than the orbits of communication satellites, on Friday, April 13, 2029.[25]
- The Andes Plane Crash of 1972 occurred on Friday, October 13, 1972.
- Unix time reached 1,234,567,890 seconds on Friday, February 13, 2009.[26]
- A London Underground Engineering train on the Northern Line became uncoupled and went on a 13 minute journey southbound from Archway, finally stopping at Warren Street tube station. The train in front has been forced to skip several stations and been diverted to the city branch on August 13, 2010.[27]
References
- ^ Alternative spellings include paraskevodekatriaphobia.
- ^ "Snopes.com". Snopes.com. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ a b c d Weisstein, Eric W. "Triskaidekaphobia on MathWorld". MathWorld. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
- ^ a b c Nathaniel Lachenmeyer, 13: The Story of the World's Most Popular Superstition ch. 5 (2004).
- ^ a b Roach, John (2004-08-12). "Friday the 13th Phobia Rooted in Ancient History". National Geographic News. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
- ^ a b Clar, Mimi (1957). "Friday the 13th". Western Folklore: 62–63.
- ^ a b "Friday the 13th". snopes.com. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
- ^ Leokum, Arkady (June 1993). The Big Book of Tell Me Why. Dorset Pr. ISBN 0880293179.
- ^ Charles Panati, Panati's Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things, 1987, p. 13.
- ^ "Why Friday the 13th Is Unlucky". Urbanlegends.about.com. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ Thomas W. Lawson. "Thomas W. Lawson, ''Friday, the Thirteenth'' (1907)". Gutenberg.org. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ a b Rafael Falcón, Christine Yoder Falcón Salsa: a taste of Hispanic culture, p. 64, Praeger (1998), ISBN 0275961214
- ^ Josh Sens, "Some Don't Count on lucky", Via Magazine, January 2004.
- ^ Mirror.co.uk, "Friday 13th is no longer unlucky".
- ^ Dutch study shows Friday 13th not more unlucky, Reuters.com
- ^ T.J. Scanlon, R.N. Luben, F.X. Scanlon, N. Singleton (1993). "Is Friday the 13th bad for your health?". British Medical Journal (307): 1584–1586.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ B.H. Brown, "Solution to Problem E36", American Mathematical Monthly, vol. 40, issue 10 (1933), p. 607; Jean Meeus, Mathematical Astronomy Morsels IV, 2007, p. 367.
- ^ Mike Bracken (2004-10-25). "Friday The 13th: From Crystal Lake to Manhattan Ultimate DVD Collection". IGN. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
- ^ March 13, 2009 10:38 AM (2009-03-13). "Newslite.tv". Newslite.tv. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Thorpeparkmania.co.uk". Thorpeparkmania.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ Holy Order Of Kites And Hats[dead link]
- ^ Rosenberg-Naparsteck, Ruth (1991). "The Real Simon Pure Sam Patch" (PDF). Rochester History. LII (3). Rochester Public Library. ISSN 0035-7413. Retrieved January 6, 2008.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ "Colgate Day 2010". Colgate Connect. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ Engst, Adam C. (2009-11-13). "TidBITS Safe Computing: International Verify Your Backups Day". Tidbits.com. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ McGuire, Bill (2005). Global Catastrophes: A Very Short Introduction. US: Oxford University Press. p. 5. ISBN 0192804936.
...the recently discovered asteroid, Apophis..., which will pass within the orbits of our communication satellites on 13 April 2029
- ^ Vivek Gite. "Cyberciti.biz". Cyberciti.biz. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
- ^ "BBC.co.uk". BBC.co.uk. 2010-08-13. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
External links
- Some don't count on Lucky 13 – Via Magazine
- A Bad-Luck Guide to Friday the 13th – image slideshow by Life magazine
- Robslink.com – Calendar Showing Friday 13s