Friday the 13th: creepy facts about this day and the origin of superstitions

Today is January 13, and even Friday, which means that one of the most unsuccessful days of the year has come. What do you know about it, besides the fact that for some reason this is the unluckiest day? Why is everyone so afraid of him and is it necessary to be afraid of such coincidences at all? What does science, statistics and common sense say about this? Edition Popmech collected the most interesting facts, as well as stories about Friday, which falls on the 13th.

Photo: Shutterstock

Origin

Fears regarding the number 13 and Friday have existed separately since biblical times, but they united quite recently - at the beginning of the 13th century. The starting point for the popularization of Friday and the 13th is the release of the book by the stock market dealer Thomas Lawson "Friday the XNUMXth", where he talked about speculation on human prejudices.

In the same year, a chic seven-masted sailboat named after Lawson set off on its first transatlantic voyage. He set off and was wrecked on Friday, December 13th. By the way, more than a hundred years later, on January 13, 2012, the Costa Concordia liner lay on its side.

With science you can not argue

In total, each Gregorian 400-year cycle has 146097 days (365 x 400 = 146000 and 97 additional days in February). This cycle consists of 20871 weeks and 4800 months. Each 400-year cycle has the same distribution of Fridays on the 13th of the month.

In addition, the 13th is slightly more likely to fall on a Friday than on other days of the week. On an average cycle, Friday the 13th falls every 21235 days.

At least once a year the 13th coincides with a Friday. And this is bad news for those suffering from unspoken phobias. In 2020, humanity will experience two Fridays with the number 13 - in January and October.

According to statistics, there cannot be more than three 13th Fridays per year, which is not so much. In a month, if it starts on a Sunday, it is guaranteed to have one Friday the 13th.

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According to Dutch scientists, such days are statistically much safer than others. This can be explained by the fact that people who do not suffer from a phobia simply do not notice Friday, which coincided with the 13th, while those subject to it try to act as carefully as possible.

New calendar

In the early 1960s, the United Nations decided to hold a competition for a new calendar. The fact is that the Gregorian chronology, according to which we now live, has a different number of days in months and quarters, and for some reason this is very disturbing for the assessors at the UN.

Other projects included calendars that didn't even have a day of the week like Friday the 13th. Towards the end of the 1990s, the idea of ​​reforming the calendar at the UN returned again, but so far this has not led to anything.

Losses or gains

Thanks to the Friday hysteria of 13, thousands of stockbrokers around the world make millions of dollars in profits on this day, because they work, like Thomas Lawson, on human prejudices.

And the creators of one of the most successful film franchises, Friday the 13th, earned more than $ 12 million on only 465 films. Add to this the income from comics, books, series and souvenirs. And although critics have always reacted negatively about the films and series of this franchise, the protagonist Jason Voorhees is one of the most famous images in popculture, and its creators are billionaires.

Among other things, there are those who suffer from Friday the 13th. For example, airlines that observe the strongest decline in consumer activity on this day, even in the high season.

Developers, on the other hand, have to sell apartments on the 13th floor with significant discounts, and some logistics centers in Europe pay extra for work on Friday, which fell on the 13th, as for processing.

10 creepy and interesting facts about Friday the 13th, said the publication The only:

It is believed that the myth associated with the number 13, originated in the Middle Ageswhen it was believed that this is a symbol of worship of the devil. It is worth recalling at least the coven, which gathered 13 people: 12 witches and the main participant.

Phobia associated with fear of the number 13, called triskaidekaphobia (or terdekaphobia). A phobia of Friday with a number is called paraskavedekatriaphobia. The latter affects more than 60 million people in the world. Many of them do not go to work on Friday the 13th and do not drive a car that day, and some even try not to get out of bed so as not to bring trouble.

According to psychologists, on this day people more at undue risk, because in case of failure, everything can be blamed on a mountain-date. Official British statistics show that on Friday the 13th there are more accidents than on other days.

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Complex transactions on the 13th on Friday are practically not carried out, since surgeons are rather superstitious people and try to observe signs.

As is known, many hotels do not have a 13th floor, at airports - section number 13, and in hospitals it is unlikely that you will be able to find a ward under this number.

A lot of events in history are connected with the number 13. Even Homer and Cicero considered the 13th unsuccessful number. 13 evil spirits meet in Kabbalah — religious-mystical and esoteric currents; Judah was the 13th at the table, about his betrayal is told in the 13th chapter of the Gospel of John; The revelation of John the Evangelist, or Apocalypse, is the last, 13th book of the New Testament.

Tickets for flights that fall on the 13th are sold 10% cheaper. And if the flight falls on Friday, the 13th, then a ticket for such the flight will be as much as 20% cheaper. Thus, airlines are trying to somehow attract customers, since there are not so many who want to.

Rђ RІRѕS, hackers just love Friday the 13th. It is on this day that the largest number of DOS attacks and virus launches occurs. The first such internet outrage occurred in 1988. The Jerusalem virus wiped over a thousand files from computers around the world. Since then, launching a virus on the 13th on Friday has become a kind of hacker tradition.

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