Overview
- 2026 features three Friday-the-13th dates—February, today’s March 13, and November—drawing renewed attention to the superstition.
- Commonly cited roots include the 13 guests at the Last Supper, the Christian tradition of Friday as the day of the crucifixion, Norse tales of Loki as a 13th guest, and the arrests of the Knights Templar on Friday, Oct. 13, 1307.
- Modern culture amplified the fear through Thomas W. Lawson’s 1907 novel Friday, the Thirteenth and the Friday the 13th film franchise centered on the iconography of Jason.
- Regional beliefs vary, with Friday the 13th most prevalent in the Anglosphere, Tuesday the 13th widely feared in Latin countries such as Argentina and Spain, and Friday the 17th cited in Italy.
- Studies have not found higher accident or disaster rates on these dates, though behaviors and commerce reflect the belief, from skipped 13th floors and airline row omissions to fewer weddings and reported dips in bookings.