Friday the 13th has long been considered an unlucky day by the superstitious. On par with walking under ladders, breaking mirrors and seeing a black cat, this superstition is widely known. It was made even more culturally widespread in 1980 when the classic horror film of the same name was released. But why, exactly, do we care?
Beginnings of a Superstition
This odd belief has it’s equally odd roots most likely in 19th century France. According to the Library of Congress, the first recorded writing of the phrase is found in an 1834 edition of the magazine Revue de Paris by author Marquis de Salvo. He refers to a Sicilian count who killed his daughter on Friday the 13th, and states “It is always Fridays and the number 13 that bring bad luck!”.
That same year, in a French play an actor states “I was born on Friday, December 13th, 1813, and from there comes all my misfortunes.”
By the mid-1800s, this belief was widespread in all of France and was beginning to travel around the world. One of the more fascinating things to come of this belief is the “Thirteen Club of New York”. This “club” first met on January 13, 1892 and was headed by Captain William Fowler. Captain Fowler had the number 13 show up many times in his life, from where he went to school at Public School No. 13, to fighting in 13 battles in the Civil War. at 8:13PM on that day in 1892, the club met in room #13 of Fowler’s cottage, with 13 men present. Upon entry, they passed under a ladder with a sign that read “Those of us who are about to die salute you!”. They lit 13 candles, had 13 courses of dinner, and had a grand old time. A year later at a meeting, they noted none of the members had died, nor even had serious illness. Former presidents Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison, and Theodore Roosevelt were all members of the club at some point.
Of course, it is highly likely that this superstition may have existed before the 1800s, both the number 13 and Friday are considered individually unlucky in many cultures around the world.
Unlucky Fridays and 13s
Friday being an “unlucky” day likely has its roots in Christianity. Jesus’ crucifixion occurred on a Friday, and for many Christian based religions fasting on Fridays is not uncommon. This idea is backed up by the fact Friday is not considered unlucky in countries around the world where Christianity is not the primary religion. In fact, in most Hispanic culture Tuesday the 13th is unlucky, and in Italy Friday the 17th is actually the unlucky day.
Why 13 is the unlucky number is a bit more of a mystery. You may have heard of the Norse story of Loki crashing a meeting of 12 Gods, making him the 13th guest, and killing Baldr, but according to the Library of Congress no such story actually exists. Once again, this could have its roots in Christianity. At the Last Supper, there were 13 guests and despite the Bible not actually stating arrival order, Judas is believed to have been the 13th to arrive.
If you have seen the film or read the book
The Davinci Code
you may be familiar with a story that dates all the way back to 1307. The Knight’s Templar was a Catholic military order charged with protecting pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. On Friday, October 13th, 1307 the order to arrest all those in the Knight’s Templar came from King Phillip IV, and the Templar was ended. This could have led to the number 13 being considered unlucky, if not a combination of the two. Of course, this would have also come later once the date of the decree was much more widespread since in Medieval times the news wouldn’t have traveled very far.
Whatever the reason, Friday the 13th is one of many superstitions still observed around the world today. It has lost some steam culturally in the past decade or so, but you will no doubt still see many social media posts about it.
It might pay to carry a little extra salt to toss over your shoulder today.
