Read in this article all about the origin of Friday the 13th and why people are so superstitious when it comes to Friday the 13th. Friday the 13th a lucky accident
Next Friday it will be that time again and it will be the infamous Friday again… The Friday that is feared by some, because this day is associated with accidents, disaster and the like. Friday, August 13, 2021 it's Friday the 13th again! Read in this article all about the origin of Friday the 13th and why people are so superstitious when it comes to Friday the 13th.
It is incorrectly assumed that Friday the 13th originated from the 'Black Friday' of the year 1929 in the US. The infamous day marked by the stock market crash. This crash started already on Thursday and certainly not on the thirteenth. But what is this superstition based on?
700 years ago was a black day for the Templars. The story that is told goes like this:on a Friday the thirteenth in the year 1307, Phillip IV, king of France, had all the Templars in all of Europe captured. Many Templars were convicted, thrown into dungeons, or executed. The French king was after the riches of the knights, who were a Christian order made up of knights and monks. An unlucky day for the Knights Templar!
Originally, the superstition was not specific to Friday the 13th, but split into both Friday and the unlucky number 13. Christians saw Friday as an unlucky day as Jesus was crucified on a Friday. Also, Christian traditions claim that Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise on a Friday after eating the tree of good and evil.
However, until the introduction of the infamous Friday the thirteenth, Friday was considered a lucky day among Protestants. People often got married on Friday, because that guaranteed a happy marriage. This is in stark contrast to the Catholics who, because of the background (death of Jesus), continued to see Friday as an unlucky day. The Catholics saw a new year that started on a Friday as a year of disaster. Children born on a Friday would also bring bad luck.
The number 13 has long been considered a bad omen in many cultures. This actually owes the number to the 12. The number 12 is seen in many cultures as a sacred or lucky number. The number symbolizes order and perfection. This is in stark contrast to the next number:the 13 that just disrupts the whole . The thirteen is also seen as a devil's number (devil's dozen):12 + 1
The number 12 (also called the dozen) shows up in many cases.
In short, the 12 is very common. In fairy tales, on the other hand, the 13 is always associated with the negative. Thus it was the thirteenth fairy who brought misfortune to the family of Sleeping Beauty with her spell. Biblically speaking, 13 is also negative when it comes to the Last Supper. Jesus sat at the Lord's Supper with 12 disciples and was himself the thirteenth person at the table. One of the thirteen betrayed Jesus, leading to Jesus' crucifixion.
Some argue that the 13 as an unlucky number has its origin in the fact that people used the lunar calendar in the past (for example among the Celts). Our current calendar is related to the solar calendar, the lunar calendar used to be the case.
A year was not 12, but 13 months. Back then the 13 was equal to luck! After the introduction of the new calendar by Christians, every effort was made to dissuade people from adhering to the lunar calendar. In this, eager use was made of making people anxious.
However, it is more plausible to designate Thomas William Lawson as the creator of Friday the 13th. He became a multimillionaire by speculating on the stock market and wrote a stock market novel about this, entitled:Friday the 13th.
Then in the year 1916 the movie Friday the 13th came out. In the film, directed by director Richard Oswald, relatives always died on Friday the 13th.
A later comedy about Friday the 13th was released.
All in all, enough material for the media to generate a real hype, which led more and more people to see Friday the 13th as an unlucky day. Incidentally, there are many more things that people "believe". Think of walking under a ladder, seeing a black cat or spilling salt. All things that come under the heading of superstition.
Friday the 13th is not an unlucky day in all European countries. In Spain and Greece, for example, Tuesday the 13th is considered an unlucky day. Neighboring Italy fears for Friday the 17th. In ancient Rome and China, 13 was considered a lucky number. In Mexico, 13 is still considered a lucky number. If you are in China, the number 29 is an unlucky number.
Do you believe in Friday the 13th? Do you face the day with fear and trembling or do you think it's all nonsense? Does Friday the 13th bring luck?
