If you have paraskevidekatriaphobia, the year 2012 is going to be a bad year for you. Why? If you have a fear of paraskevidekatriaphobia it means that you have a fear of Friday the 13th. Well, 2012 features three Friday the 13th dates, instead of the usual number of two, and there was only one date in 2011.
That is not the only bad news we have for you. The three Friday the 13th dates in 2012 land on January 13, April 13 and July 13; all are 13 weeks apart.
The last time there were three dates in one year was 2009 and the next will not be until 2015. The special thing about 2012, and what will not happen again until 2040, is the fact that this is occurring during a leap year. Tom Fernsler is a math professor at the University of Delaware. Fernsler says that, “I find that 95% of people in the world are superstitious about something, and the other 5% are liars,” he said.
The number 13 occurs in religious, spiritual and mythological traditions. Thirteen people attended the last supper in Christianity before Judas betrayed Jesus, which led to his death on a Friday. Dire consequences come out of a Norse myth that says you should not dine in groups of 13. The medieval Knights Templar were imprisoned on a Friday the 13th. Even though this next example is not as historic, Tupac Shakur, the rapper, died on Friday September 13, 1996 after being gunned down back on September 7.
Fernsler says that the 13th of the month falls on a Friday 688 times during a 400-year period, which makes it not that special of a thing. Fernsler enjoys finding historical ties to the number 13 and Friday the 13th, such as the birthdays of Butch Cassidy and Fidel Castro.