Now I am not a superstitious person but I know there are allot of people who are. So I decided to go on a Google hunt for the origins of this day.
First of all, did you know there is a name for it? The fear of Friday the 13th? I did not, and even if I did, there is no way in hell I could ever pronounce it: Paraskevidekatriaphobics if you can pronounce that, you are a better person than I.
Here's an interesting little tidbit from David Emery Urban Legends Expert.
LEGEND HAS IT: If 13 people sit down to dinner together, one will die within the year. The Turks so disliked the number 13 that it was practically expunged from their vocabulary (Brewer, 1894). Many cities do not have a 13th Street or a 13th Avenue. Many buildings don't have a 13th floor. If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck (e.g., Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy, and Albert De Salvo all have 13 letters in their names). There are 13 witches in a coven.
More of his article can be found at: About Entertainment
I personally like this explanation in so much as, I do believe in God and believe he is the Almighty but I do not believe in organized religion as it has become more business than true religion, and, I believe that when the books of the Bible were chosen, by men, and re-written by a King, that women, one specifically, Mary Magdalene, were vilified to suit the times. (but that is a whole different blog post, for a later date)
Anathema
Still other sources speculate that the number 13 may have been purposely vilified by the founders of patriarchal religions in the early days of western civilization because it represented femininity. Thirteen is said to have been revered in prehistoric goddess-worshiping cultures because it corresponded to the number of lunar (menstrual) cycles in a year (13 x 28 = 364 days). The "Earth Mother of Laussel," for example — a 27,000-year-old carving found near the Lascaux caves in France often cited as an icon of matriarchal spirituality — depicts a female figure holding a crescent-shaped horn bearing 13 notches. As the solar calendar triumphed over the lunar with the rise of male-dominated civilization, so did the "perfect" number 12 over the "imperfect" number 13, thereafter considered anathema.
I have heard of people being so scared of Friday the 13th they won't even leave their homes as stated in this article by John Roach for National Geographic.
Though written in 2004 I don't think much has changed as far as this superstition is concerned.
Friday the 13th Phobia Rooted in Ancient History
And it doesn't help much that we are already at the 2nd Friday the 13th for this year.
Friday the 13th: What you need to know
There are apparently even medically related articles written about it:
Popular Belief Meets Surgical Reality: Impact of Lunar Phases, Friday the 13th and Zodiac Signs on Emergency Operations and Intraoperative Blood Loss
And here, a few more interesting tidbits for you: I thought the bit about the Apollo 13 was interesting.
Myths and History of Friday the 13th
There are tons and tons of links and articles about it. Just thought I would share a few with you I thought were interesting.
As for me, I'm taking a 6 hour road trip, on a wet rainy day, with clouds so thick it looks like night outside.
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