A purely Italian superstition that has ancient origins
February 17th
– Rome
Who knows how many today in Italy will have decided to take a day of sickness or rest from work, or perhaps will walk cautiously down the street fearing some adverse event. Indeed it is friday 17, a date which in the Italian tradition is associated with bad luck and which in this 2023 will be repeated for two consecutive months (February and March). So apart from those who are among the lucky winners of the Superenalotto, all the others will be casting spells hoping to get through the day unscathed.
because Friday the 17th brings bad luck
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It must be premised that the bad luck associated with 17 is a typically Italian prerogativein other countries bad luck is linked to the number thirteen, it is no coincidence that there is a horror film Friday the 13th and not Friday the 17th. In Italy the “13” is “forbidden” at the table, a superstition linked to the Gospel and the Last Supper where thirteen sat around the table. The roots of bad luck associated with number 17 they are different and the combination with Friday is typical of countries with a Greek-Latin tradition.
what is heptacaidekaphobia
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The “fear” of the number seventeen is called heptacaidekaphobia a word of clear Greek origin composed of the terms seventeen and phobia. In ancient Greece the followers of Pythagoras hated 17 as being in between 16 and 18 which were perfect in their representation of the 4×4 and 3×6 quadrilaterals. According to the Old Testament the great flood began on the 17th of the second month as reported by Genesis. Another cause of the superstition about the number seventeen is related to writing in Roman numerals XVII associated with the anagram VIXI which means I livedtherefore “I don’t live anymore I’m dead”.
Friday 17 and the legends
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According to other theories the 17 is associated with the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in AD 9. one of the greatest defeats of the Roman Empire, when three legions the XVII, XVII and XIX were destroyed, with the three numbers then never used again for legions. The 17th is associated with bad luck in the Neapolitan grimace. The association with the Friday is instead linked to the day on which, according to the Bible, Jesus died. On the contrary, it is curious how in Hebrew the 17 indicates good luck for the combination of the Hebrew letters tet (9), waw (6), beth (2) which read together give tov, good.
Friday the 13th brings bad luck
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In the rest of the world there are other unlucky days. In particular in the Anglo-Saxon countries it is the Friday the 13th the unlucky day. Triscaidekaphobia, the fear of the number 13 has less certain origins, linked to the Last Supper of the Gospels or to Scandinavian mythology with Loki who arrived, uninvited, as the thirteenth to a dinner in Valhalla causing Hod to shoot Balder with a poisoned arrow. According to folklore historian Donald Dossey Balder’s death brought all the land to mourn. For other sources, Friday 13 brings bad luck as a consequence of the date of Friday 13 October 1307, when Philip IV the Fair had all the Knights Templar arrested.
February 17, 2023 – 11:41 am
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