DEBI DESILVER TERRY
The Express-Star
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Broken any mirrors lately? Walked under any ladders? Black cat crossed your path? Are you a paraskevidekatriaphobic?
A paraskevi ... what? Don’t get offended! That’s just a big word for people who are afflicted with a morbid, irrational fear of Friday the 13th (which is today, by the way).
For most of us, 13s and Fridays don’t matter at all — even when they are combined. But folklorists say Friday the 13th is probably the most widespread superstition in the United States. Some people won’t go to work on Friday the 13th and many would never think of setting a wedding on that date.
How many Americans in our advanced technological age still suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia, the fear of Friday the 13th? According to Dr. Donald Dossey, a psychotherapist specializing in the treatment of phobias and the man who coined the term paraskevidekatriaphobia, said the figure may be as high as 21 million. If he’s right, eight percent of Americans are still in the grips of a very old superstition. More information on this can be found at http://urbanlegends.about.com
/cs/historical/a/friday_the_13th.htm.
Ancient civilizations weren’t unanimous in their dread of the number 13. The Chinese regarded the number as lucky, some commentators say, as did the Egyptians in the time of the pharaohs. In Japan, the number three is considered unlucky.
And then there are those who say all this bad luck hooey is just in your mind — if you believe you will have bad luck, then you will. If you believe you will have good luck, then you will.
Just for the record, here are some good events that happened on a Friday the 13th:
• Friday, Sept. 13, 1939: Igor Secorsky invented the helicopter.
• Friday, July 13, 1900: Teddy Roosevelt laid the cornerstone for the new county courthouse in New York.
• Friday, Sept. 13, 1857: Milton Hershey was born — and he gave us Hershey chocolate!
Now, that’s not just a good thing — that’s a great thing!
Oh, while you’re munching on a chocolate bar, here’s a little trivia to ponder. The long word paraskevidekatriaphobia is derived from three Greek words:
• Paraskevi, which means Friday;
• Dekatria, which means 13;
• Phobia, which means fear.
• More than 80 percent of high-rise buildings lack a 13th floor.
• Many airports skip the 13th gate.
• Airplanes have no 13th aisle.
• Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
• Italians omit the number 13 from their national lottery.
• On streets in Florence, Italy, the house between number 12 and 14 is addressed as 12 and a half.
