Friday the 13th is a day that continues to captivate people’s imaginations, revealing the power of superstition in shaping our collective consciousness as it stirs a mix of superstition, cultural history, and personal beliefs.
For some, it’s a day to be wary of, a day when bad luck might be lurking just around the corner, while for others, it’s simply another date on the calendar, devoid of any real significance.
For many, Friday the 13th is a day that stirs feelings of unease, as the combination of the day of the week and the number 13 is often linked to bad luck and misfortune.
This date has long been considered ominous in various cultures, though the origins of this superstition remain somewhat unclear.
Here are several possible explanations for why Friday the 13th has garnered such a reputation.
The Last Supper and the Number 13
One theory behind the superstition surrounding Friday the 13th traces back to Christian tradition. According to the New York Historical Society, the origins of the superstition may be linked to the Last Supper, where Jesus Christ and his 12 apostles were present, making a total of 13 people at the table.
In this context, some believe that having 13 individuals gathered at a meal “courted death,” as the number 13 was associated with betrayal.
The most notable instance of betrayal in Christian tradition is Judas Iscariot, who, as the 13th guest at the table, later betrayed Jesus, leading to his crucifixion.
According to biblical tradition, 13 guests attended the Last Supper, held on Maundy Thursday, including Jesus and his 12 apostles (one of whom, Judas, betrayed him). The next day, of course, was Good Friday, the day of Jesus’ crucifixion.
The seating arrangement at the Last Supper is believed to have given rise to a longstanding Christian superstition that having 13 guests at a table was a bad omen—specifically, that it was courting death.
Scholars believe the Last Supper was held on Wednesday, 1 April AD 33, the crucifixion on Friday, 3 April AD 33, and the resurrection of Jesus on the third day.
Though Friday’s negative associations are weaker, some have suggested they also have roots in Christian tradition: Just as Jesus was crucified on a Friday, Friday was also said to be the day Eve gave Adam the fateful apple from the Tree of Knowledge, as well as the day Cain killed his brother, Abel.
The Arrest of the Knights Templar
Another explanation connects the superstition to the historical event of Friday, October 13, 1307, when hundreds of the Knights Templar—a powerful religious and military order formed in the 12th century for the defense of the Holy Land—were arrested by officers of King Philip IV of France.
Imprisoned on charges of various illegal behaviors (but really because the king wanted access to their financial resources), many Templars were eventually executed.
As the popularity of the Crusades had decreased and support for the military orders had waned, Philip used a complaint against the Knights Templar as an excuse to move against the entire organization to free himself from his substantial debts to the monastic military order whose original role as protectors of Christian pilgrims in the Latin East had been largely replaced by banking and other commercial activities by the end of the 13th century.
The day was a significant moment in the downfall of the order, which led to its eventual dissolution, so Friday the 13th became associated with misfortune and doom.
Some cite the link with the Templars as the origin of the Friday the 13th superstition, but like many legends involving the order, the truth remains murky.
Over time, this association with the arrest and persecution of the Templars may have contributed to the widespread belief in the unluckiness of the day.
The Norse Myth of Loki
The number 13’s negative reputation is also present in Norse mythology, particularly in the story of Loki, the trickster god.
According to one tale, Loki crashed a banquet in Valhalla as the 13th guest. His arrival caused chaos, as he orchestrated the death of Balder, the god of joy, by tricking the blind god Höðr into shooting Balder with a mistletoe-tipped arrow.
The event marked the beginning of Ragnarok, the end of the world in Norse mythology.
This myth contributed to the association of the number 13 with misfortune in cultures influenced by Norse beliefs.
The Mathematical Significance of 13
The superstition surrounding the number 13 may also stem from its mathematical properties.
In many cultures, the number 12 has been seen as a symbol of completeness or wholeness—there are 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, and 12 hours on a clock.
In contrast, the number 13 is seen as irregular and disruptive. It does not fit into this pattern of completeness, which may explain why it has historically been viewed with suspicion and negativity.
Paraskavedekatriaphobia and Triskaidekaphobia
The fear of Friday the 13th is known as paraskavedekatriaphobia, a term that combines the Greek words for Friday (paraskevi) and 13 (dekatria), along with the suffix for fear.
Similarly, the fear of the number 13 itself is called triskaidekaphobia.
These phobias are recognized in various cultures, and many individuals go to great lengths to avoid encounters with the number 13, such as avoiding booking appointments, traveling, or engaging in other activities on Friday the 13th.
Despite these superstitions, there is no evidence to suggest that Friday the 13th is inherently more dangerous or unlucky than any other day.
However, for those who are particularly sensitive to these beliefs, the date remains a source of unease.
Whether you believe in the superstition or not, Friday the 13th continues to be a day of fascination, prompting discussions and reflections on the origins and persistence of such cultural myths.
The Thirteen Club
In the late-19th century, a New Yorker named Captain William Fowler (1827-1897) sought to remove the enduring stigma surrounding the number 13—and particularly the unwritten rule about not having 13 guests at a dinner table—by founding an exclusive society called the Thirteen Club.
The group dined regularly on the 13th day of the month in room 13 of the Knickerbocker Cottage, a popular watering hole Fowler owned from 1863 to 1883. Before sitting down for a 13-course dinner, members would pass beneath a ladder and a banner reading “Morituri te Salutamus,” Latin for “Those of us who are about to die salute you.”
Four former U.S. presidents (Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison and Theodore Roosevelt) would join the Thirteen Club’s ranks at one time or another.
Friday the 13th in Pop Culture
An important milestone in the history of the Friday the 13th legend in particular (not just the number 13) occurred in 1907, with the publication of the novel Friday, the Thirteenth written by Thomas William Lawson.
The book tells the story of a New York City stockbroker who plays on superstitions about the date to create chaos on Wall Street and make a killing on the market.
The horror movie Friday the 13th, released in 1980, introduced the world to a hockey mask-wearing killer named Jason, is perhaps the best-known example of the famous superstition in pop culture history. The movie spawned multiple sequels, as well as comic books, novellas, video games, related merchandise, and countless terrifying Halloween costumes.
What Happened on Friday 13th?
In more recent times, several traumatic events have occurred on Friday the 13th, including the German bombing of Buckingham Palace (September 1940); the murder of Kitty Genovese in Queens, New York (March 1964); a cyclone that killed more than 300,000 people in Bangladesh (November 1970); the disappearance of a Chilean Air Force plane in the Andes (October 1972); the death of rapper Tupac Shakur (September 1996) and the crash of the Costa Concordia cruise ship off the coast of Italy, which killed 30 people (January 2012).