13 fun facts about Friday the 13th!

Woah. Watch out for black cats and ladders today, as everyone’s favorite day to play hookie makes an appearance (and a day before Valentines Day at that!) Here are 13 fun facts about Friday the 13th!

The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia, a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (?????????) (meaning Friday), and dekatreís (?????????) (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía (?????) (meaning fear).
According to folklorists, there is no written evidence for a “Friday the 13th” superstition before the 19th century.
There are two leading theories on its origins:

another theory by author Charles Panati, one of the leading authorities on the subject of “Origins” maintains that the superstition can be traced back to ancient myth:

The actual origin of the superstition, though, appears also to be a tale in Norse mythology. Friday is named for Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished in shame to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil – a gathering of thirteen – and plotted ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as “Witches’ Sabbath.”

Another theory about the origin of the superstition traces the event to the arrest of the legendary Knights Templar. According to one expert:

The Knights Templar were a monastic military order founded in Jerusalem in 1118 C.E., whose mission was to protect Christian pilgrims during the Crusades. Over the next two centuries, the Knights Templar became extraordinarily powerful and wealthy. Threatened by that power and eager to acquire their wealth, King Philip secretly ordered the mass arrest of all the Knights Templar in France on Friday, October 13, 1307 – Friday the 13th.

Source: Wikipedia
Any month that begins on a Sunday will contain a Friday the 13th, and there is at least one Friday the 13th in every calendar year.
According to Smithsonian Magazine “fear of the #13 costs American a billion dollars per year in absenteeism, train and plane cancellations, and reduced commerce on the 13th of the month.”
Ancient Romans regarded the number 13 as a symbol of death, destruction and misfortune.
Lizzy Borden uttered a total of 13 words at her trial.
There were 13 original colonies.
A witches coven consists of 13 members.
Tarot Card number 13 is the Death Card, depicting the Grim Reaper (although it is read as transition or change and not literal death).
Apollo 13, 1970, the 13th mission launched from pad #39 (13 x 3), mission was aborted, after an explosion occurred in the fuel cell of their service module. The rocket had left launcing pad at 13:13 CST and the date was April 13th.
13 knots in a hangman’s noose.
13 feet which the guillotine blade falls.