Today is Friday the 13th so The Garda Post thought it would be appropriate to explore the history of where it comes from.

Why is there so much superstition behind this day and is it really unlucky?

Perhaps one of the most popular myths attempting to explain the origins of Friday the 13th is the story of the Knights Templar on Friday, October 13th, 1307.

On this day in 1307, Philip IV of France arrested and burnt hundreds of the Knights Templar.

The myth became popular after Dan Brown cited the 14th century execution of Templar Grand Master Jacques de Molay in his novel Da Vinci Code.

Fear of Friday the 13th is deep rooted in Christianity.

It comes from the fear of the number 13 and the fear of Fridays.

Did you know? Thirteen was the number of people present at Jesus Christ’s Last Supper according to the New Testament.

Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th member to arrive.

The Last Supper was the day before Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday which so happened to be on the 13th.

Unfortunate Occurrences on Friday the 13th

• During the Blitz attacks in World War 2, the Nazis dropped five bombs on Buckingham Palace on September 13th, 1940.
• A cyclone that hit Bangladesh on November 13th, 1970 killed thousands of people.
• Rapper Tupac Shakur died from fatal gun shot wounds on September 13th, 1996, six days after a drive by shooting.
• The largest passenger-ship wreck killed more than 30 passengers aboard the Costa Concordia on January 13th, 2012.
• A series of terror attacks carried out by Isil in Paris, killing 130 people, occurred on November 13th, 2015.

Psychologists have even coined the phobia paraskavedekatriaphobia, which is the fear of Friday the 13th.

Happy Friday the 13th folks!