In 2024, there were two Friday the 13ths. In 2026, there will be three. This year? There is only one Friday the 13th. For the believers out there, that means an extra-concentrated dose of bad luck.
But what is the true story behind Friday the 13th, and where do these superstitions originate? Let us walk you through the most common theories about why this day gets such a bad wrap.
Why is Friday the 13th unlucky?
There is no definitive origin source for the idea that Friday the 13th will bring bad luck, but there are plenty of theories. Throughout history, both Fridays and the number 13 have been considered unlucky on their own (more on that later). However, it wasn’t until around the 19th century that the two began combining into a new, superstitious phenomenon.
Folklore specialist Stephen Winick told NPR that around this time, people started “to make references to it being unlucky without saying why they think it’s unlucky. And because of that, typically what you get is all kinds of wild theories.” Read on for some of the most popular.
Why is 13 considered unlucky?
Unlucky associations with the number 13 predate superstitions around Friday the 13th. In most Western cultures, the number 12 holds positive associations of “completeness”. There are 12 months in the year, 12 zodiac signs, and 12 days of Christmas. So the odd number 13, by contrast, was its antithesis. There is even a word to describe the specific fear of the number 13: triskaidekaphobia.
In Norse mythology, there is a tale relating to the trickster god Loki, which is said to be the reason many consider 13 an unlucky number. Loki crashed a dinner party of 12 gods, thus becoming the unlucky 13th guest. At the party, he tricked the blind god Höd into murdering his own brother Balder, the god of light and goodness, and the earth was plunged into darkness.
In the Christian religion, the story of the Last Supper resulted in a similar fear that having 13 guests around a table is bad luck. Judas – the betrayer of Jesus – was the 13th guest at the Last Supper. The next day, Jesus was crucified.
But why is Friday bad luck?
Again, Christianity has had a lot of influence on this particular belief. It largely stems from Christ being crucified on a Friday. However, it has also been said by some scholars that the following also occurred on Fridays: Eve and Adam eating the forbidden fruit, the great flood beginning, the temple of Solomon being destroyed, and Cain killing Abel.
Another association commonly linked to Friday causing bad luck is that in Catholicism, Fridays are traditionally a day of penance.
There are also instances of literary works claiming that Friday and bad luck went hand in hand, which likely reflected common beliefs at the time. For example, in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, Fridays were associated with “mischance”.
How the two superstitions were combined
Folklore scholars often trace the earliest mentions of Friday the 13th bringing bad luck to France. A French article from 1834 telling the gruesome story of a father murdering his daughter on a Friday the 13th claimed, “It is always Fridays and the number 13 that bring bad luck!” Also, that year in France, a character in a play uttered the line, “I was born on a Friday, December 13th, 1813, from which come all of my misfortunes.”
In 1907, American author Thomas W. Lawson published the novel Friday, the Thirteenth, in which a stockbroker deliberately uses the superstition around the day to crash the market on that date (to his advantage, of course).
There are also links between Friday the 13th and the fall of the Knights Templars, as it was on this day that many Templars were arrested, and later tortured and killed, by King Philip IV of France.
Friday the 13th in popular culture
For many, Friday the 13th brings to mind the 1980 horror film and resulting franchise. Many credit the franchise, which features the iconic hockey-mask-wearing killer Jason Voorhees, with spreading the notion that Friday the 13th is unlucky. 2025 marks 45 years since the original Friday the 13th movie appeared in cinemas. (If you feel like a nostalgia hit, several of the movies are available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime.)
Another popular culture usage of the superstition is in the original Freaky Friday film from 1976, starring Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris (which is available to watch on Disney+). On a Friday the 13th, a mother and daughter swap bodies after wishing to trade places. A new movie in the Freaky Friday franchise, Freakier Friday, is releasing this year, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reprising their roles following the 2003 remake (also available to watch on Disney+).
How to know when a Friday the 13th is on its way
There is at least one Friday the 13th in every year, and there can be up to three (like there will be in 2026). Luckily, there’s a simple trick to give yourself some advanced warning if you prefer to play it safe on this supposed unlucky day. If the first day of a month is a Sunday, that month will have a Friday the 13th.
Fun facts about Friday the 13th:
- Friday the 13th is not a universal superstition. In Italy, the 17th is considered unlucky by many. Furthermore, in Greece and many Spanish-speaking countries, Tuesday the 13th is the unlucky day.
- Paraskevidekatriaphobia is the word for a fear of Friday the 13th. It’s based on the Greek words for Friday, thirteen, and phobia. Friggatriskaidekaphobia, which incorporates the Norse influence of the goddess Frigg, is also used.
- It’s been estimated that Friday the 13th results in financial losses of around $800 million each year in the US. People tend to stay at home on the day, avoiding work, travel, and even making any big decisions.
- For decades, tattoo parlours have been offering Friday the 13th promotions, with people flocking to parlours for cheap tattoos. They’re often small, pre-determined artworks. Symbols related to bad luck, like the number 13, are popular choices.
