The origin of some famous superstitions such as Friday the 13th.

Today is Friday the 13th. Why does this fact have a certain connotation that, say, Tuesday the 10th does not?

Superstition. Unfounded beliefs that one thing leads to another. Bad things happen when the 13th falls on a Friday. Or when you break the mirror.

But where are they from?

According to journalist Shelby El Othmani, while superstitions are by definition unproven, they often represent a well-intentioned attempt to understand something and prevent something bad from happening. She is the author of The Book of Superstitions, which comes out in March.

“It comes from us trying to understand what’s going on around us and trying to create a little less insecurity and anxiety about the normal chaos of life,” she said.

El Othmani said that superstitions make sense even from an evolutionary standpoint, if you simply boil them down to “better safe than sorry.”

“I think, superstition aside, you can hear a loud sound and it can make you nervous,” she said. “And so you run away from the sound. I think you can trace the superstition back to, “Oh, the last time I did that was Friday the 13th (for example) and something really bad happened.” So Friday the 13th is bad luck.”

In the audio above, El Othmani talks to Houston Matters producer Michael Hagerty about what she found in her research into the backstories of some of the more common superstitions.

THE ORIGIN OF SOME KNOWN SUPERSTITIES:

Friday the 13th – According to El Othmani, it is a combination of beliefs. The idea that the number 13 is unlucky goes back to Christianity (and is itself unlucky if you look at it in terms of the unlucky number 13).

Western culture has long considered the number 12 to be a very complete number. There are twelve months in a year. The zodiac consists of twelve signs, etc.

“And the funny thing is, the reason 13 is a bit of a pariah is because it comes after 12,” she said. “It is the first number that follows such a holy, complete number.”

So number 13 was unlucky himself. But what has Friday ever done to anyone?

El Othmani said it was also from the Bible. It is believed that on Friday Cain killed his brother Abel, and on Friday Eve bit off the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.

“So, from a biblical perspective, there is a sense of unhappiness on Friday.”

El Othmani notes that Friday is not a pariah in every culture. In Greece, Tuesday the 13th is considered unlucky. In some East Asian cultures, the number four is ominous.

“Because in language the number four sounds very similar to the word death,” she said.

Say “Bless you” This superstition comes from the era of the bubonic plague. El Othmani said that there was a feeling at the time that if someone sneezes, it meant that they were ill and therefore likely to die soon. And the words “bless you” forgave the person of their sins.

Although we still say that when someone sneezes, it is seen more as a courtesy act and this is a good example of how many superstitions have evolved beyond their original purposes and their origins are long forgotten.

“It’s a really common superstition that’s so ingrained in our culture that you forget it’s actually a superstition,” she said.

Knock on wood – This one, said El Othmani, is closely related to the pagan idea of ​​spirits inhabiting trees. This concept underlies declining practices such as carrying the bride over the threshold of the house.

“Even if you cut down a tree to build yourself a house, [evil spirits] still live in the doorstep,” she said.

Knocking on wood comes from the practice of touching wood to ask the spirits for a favor.

“Say something and think, ‘Oh no, I shouldn’t have said that because my luck will run out and so I’ll knock on wood to make sure the energy or spirits will save everything in my favor,'” she said.

Curse of the Boyfriend Sweater This superstition is a more modern example in knitting culture. The idea is that when you date someone, don’t knit them a sweater or they’ll break up with you.

El Othmani said that while this is a pretty strong superstition, the real relationship psychology plays in the background.

“If you’re in a relationship with someone and they do the hard work of knitting you a sweater – and maybe you don’t feel that committed to the relationship – I think it’s likely that if you get the end of it, you might reconsider your own obligations,” she said. “You might be thinking, ‘Hey, maybe I wouldn’t put as much work into this relationship as this person. Maybe it’s not right for me.”

The reverse is also true. A person knitting a sweater may realize that their partner is not putting in the same effort.

“Yes, there is a magical element to it, but at the end of the day, there is an understanding that there is something more based on how the human mind works and how the human heart works,” she said.