It’s … Friday the 13th!
[Cue scary background music.]
Do you suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia?
Frigg spinning
(Frigg—sometimes anglicized to Frigga—is the powerful Norse goddess for whom “Friday” is named, and triskaidekaphobia means fear of the number thirteen.)
How did we come to be superstitious about Friday the 13th?
It’s All Norse to Me
Friday was actually considered lucky in pre-Christian times. But since then, it has taken on sinister connections: it’s supposedly the day Eve gave Adam the apple, the day the great flood started, the day the Temple of Solomon was destroyed … and of course the day Christ died on the cross.
It makes sense that the superstitious associations started when Christianity moved in, mainly to discredit and lessen Frigg worship.
The number 13 has inspired trepidation for centuries.
The death of Baldr
In numerology, 12 is the number of completeness: 12 apostles, 12 months in the year, 12 hours in the day, and so on.
The number 13 has been held as “unlucky” for various reasons for centuries: the code of Hammurabi omits number 13, tall buildings have no 13th floor, cities have no 13th street.
In Norse myth, the 12 gods were dining in Valhalla and were joined by a 13th uninvited guest—Loki—who perpetrated a ruse that resulted in the death of Baldr, killed by his own blind brother Hodr, and threw the earth into darkness.
The Marriage of Unlucky Friday and Unlucky 13
Knights Templar
The amalgamation of superstitions about the day and the number has much-contested origins. Some say it started with the publication in 1907 of Thomas Lawson’s book Friday, the Thirteenth. That’s pretty recent.
My favorite explanation for the dread cast on this day is the legendary mass arrest of the remaining Knights Templar in France by King Philip of France on Friday, October 13, 1307. Amid turmoil over power, money, and fealty, they were tortured, discredited, and eventually executed. I’d call that pretty unlucky.
These days, for some of us, Friday the 13th is a great excuse to watch horror movies!
What’s your take on this superstition-inspiring day?
Here comes Jason
I’d say it’s another good day to laugh with friends and ease the tension.
Absolutely! And I am off to do the same …
Reblogged this on Thewritegirlforthejob's Blog and commented:
A little Friday the 13th history is good for all of us to keep things in perspective.
As far as history, this is very limited, but hopefully it will spark some interest for a few people to look up some of these references! Thanks for reading.
I always thought the unlucky 13 was the medieval Christian church jab at the Jewish religion where 13 is a lucky number.
http://www.ManOfLaBook.com
Of course, that’s yet another theory! There are the 13 Tribes of Israel and 13 Attributes of Mercy, but even in the New Testament, one can pick out the significance of the number 13: epiphany (when the Magi visited Christ) is on the 13th day after Christmas, there were 13 at the last supper, and so on.
What do I think? We can make a case for any significance of any number that we want. What’s fascinating is when it catches on and the world seems to go along with a particular interpretation, without most people even knowing why … like the shadow over Friday the 13th!