Why Friday the thirteenth?

Question

and not Thursday or another day?

Answer 1

Friday the 13th - The Most Widespread Superstition?

The sixth day of the week and the number 13 both have foreboding reputations said to date from ancient times, and their inevitable conjunction from one to three times a year portends more misfortune than some credulous minds can bear. Some sources say it may be the most widespread superstition in the United States. Some people won't go to work on Friday the 13th; some won't eat in restaurants; many wouldn't think of setting a wedding on the date.

Just how many Americans at the turn of the millennium still suffer from this condition? According to Dr. Donald Dossey, a psychotherapist specializing in the treatment of phobias (and coiner of the term "paraskevidekatriaphobia"), the figure may be as high as 21 million. If he's right, eight percent of Americans are still in the grips of a very old superstition.

Exactly how old is difficult to say, because determining the origins of superstitions is an imprecise science, at best. In fact, it's mostly guesswork.

Answer 2

Before the 19th century, though the number 13 was considered unlucky, and Friday was considered unlucky, there was no link between them. The first documented mention of a "Friday the 13th" is generally listed as occurring in the early 1900s.

However, documentation aside, many popular stories exist about the origin of the concept:

* The Last Supper, with stories that Judas was the thirteenth guest, and that the Crucifixion of Jesus occurred Friday.
* That the biblical Eve offered the fruit to Adam on a Friday, and that the slaying of Abel happened on a Friday (though the Bible does not identify the days of the week when these events occurred).
* That it started on Friday, October 13, 1307, the date that many Knights Templar were simultaneously arrested in France, by agents of King Philip IV.

However, historically, there is no true date that the Friday the 13th superstition can be linked to.

In the case of Greece, Tuesday, April 13, 1204 was the date that Constantinople was sacked by the crusaders of the fourth crusade. The first ever fall of the richest then Christian city, and the looting that followed, allegedly gave Tuesday 13 its bad meaning. Ironically enough, Constantinople fell for the second time in its history on Tuesday, May 29, 1453, to the Ottoman Turks, a date that puts an end to the Byzantine empire, and to Greek sovereignty for several centuries, and therefore reinforcing Tuesday as an unlucky day in the Greek world.


Many modern stories (including The Da Vinci Code) claim that when King Philip IV had many Templars simultaneously arrested on October 13, 1307, that started the legend of the unlucky Friday the 13th. However, closer examination shows that though the number 13 was indeed considered historically unlucky, the actual association of Friday and 13 seems to be an invention from the early 1900s.

Answer 3

The reason it is Friday has primarily to do with Christianity.

It is a pattern that you can see repeated over and over in other contexts. Many of the pagans considered Friday to be a holy day. A day auspicious for weddings, social events, and so on. But to early Christians, anything not Christian was evil... so if Friday was good to the pagans, it must be bad for Christians. (link 1)

Of course once Christians ran things for a thousand years or two people forgot why exactly it was that Friday was bad or the number thirteen, and stopped wondering what eggs and bunnies had to do with crucifixion or what wreaths and trees had to do with birth. So it goes.

Answer 4

If could be because of one of the following.

* The Last Supper, with stories that Judas was the thirteenth guest, and that the Crucifixion of Jesus occurred Friday.
* That the biblical Eve offered the fruit to Adam on a Friday, and that the slaying of Abel happened on a Friday (though the Bible does not identify the days of the week when these events occurred).
* That it started on Friday, October 13, 1307, the date that many Knights Templar were simultaneously arrested in France, by agents of King Philip IV.

Answer 5

I found this website outlining the details of this superstition:
http://www.snopes.com/luck/friday13.asp

Wikipedia also has a good link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friday_the_thirteenth

Did you know that paraskevidekatriaphobia is the fear of Friday the 13th?

Gotta go and shake salt over my shoulder while I put the ladder away before my black cat crosses my path. Keep your fingers crossed and you'll have good luck throughout the day!

Answer 6

Someone had to pick a date. No matter what date they chose it still would of represented the same MYTH. If They would of pick Thursday the 13th then people would feel the same we do now but it would be a different day. It's not only the date but the MYTH.

Answer 7

Whether you believe it or not , April 13 th is my birthday i.e. tomorrow and it is FRIDAY . What is there ?

Answer 8

why not friday the thirteenth?

Answer 9

because...

God died on a FRIDAY..- (that is the good friday) and all of it started with a kiss- JUDAs' Betrayal. he died because JUdas his 13TH apostle betrayed him...



just another thought:

(but actually Judas just did his part... in all this savior thing ^^,) had Judas been loyal to Christ- would Jesus be crucified? would he die on a friday? would we have friday the 13th?)

Answer 10

poewerful day for spells