NPR: It's Friday. It's the Thirteenth. Is that Good or Bad?

It's Friday. It's the Thirteenth. Is that Good or Bad?

Be very afraid. Or not.

On the show today, behavioral scientist and phobia expert Donald Dossey talked about the history and origins of Friday the 13th. He coined the word for the fear of the day, paraskevidekatriaphobia (say that 13 times fast) not to be confused with triskaidekaphobia, plain old fear of the number 13. The Triskaidekaphobia Illuminatus Society, founded in 1984, disbanded before its thirteenth anniversary.

But not everyone sees 13 as unlucky. When NPR's Margot Adler heard the interview with Dossey at the New York Bureau she begged to differ. "Doesn't he know 13 is the luckiest number?" she said, citing thirteen lunar months as a symbol of good fortune. She's not alone.

The New York Post reports that figure skater Dorothy Hamill has a special connection to the day. And yours truly, who once sported a haircut named for the ice skating champ, played as number 13 on the high school varsity soccer field. Our team was called the Red Devils (really). I still have the white satin jacket with red trim, but it's too warm to wear it today.

Laura Silver

7:39 AM ET | 06-13-2008 | permalink

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