Fear of Friday the Thirteenth

It is Friday, April 13, 2012. Friday the thirteenth, for anyone with friggatriskaidekaphobia, is dreaded day of the year because it bodes bad luck. Friggatriskaidekaphobia, is fear of Friday the Thirteenth, I comes from a combination of the name Frigga, the Norse goddess after which Friday is named, and triskaidekaphobia, fear of thirteen.

Another word fear of this day is paraskevidekatriaphobia, which is a combination of two Greek words. The first is Paraskevi, which means Friday, and the second is dekatreis, for thirteen. The phobia in both friggatriskaidekaphobia and paraskevidekatriaphobia means fear.

One of the intriguing facts about 2012 is three occurrences of Friday the Thirteenth. Those “fearful” days fall on January 13, April 13, and July 13. Another interesting fact about Friday the Thirteenth is that it always falls in months that begin with a Sunday.