SAEDNEWS: While 13 is considered unlucky in many European countries, Italy has traditionally associated bad luck with 17. The superstition may trace back to an unsettling wordplay involving the Roman numeral XVII.
According to SaedNews: Customs and superstitions can vary dramatically from one culture to another. A gesture considered harmless in one country may be offensive elsewhere. In Iraq, for example, a thumbs-up can be insulting, while shaking hands with the left hand is discouraged in India and showing the soles of your shoes to someone is considered inappropriate in South Korea.
Numbers can be just as culturally specific. Thirteen is widely viewed as unlucky across Europe, but Italy has a different number to worry about: 17. Friday the 17th is called un giorno nero, or “black day.” Some Italian football clubs avoid playing on the 17th, and certain hotels skip room number 17 altogether, moving directly from 16 to 18.
The explanation may not be religious. Although some biblical references involving 17 can sound ominous—the Great Flood is traditionally said to have begun on the 17th day of the second month—other biblical references are neutral or even positive. When Jesus appeared to his disciples after the resurrection, for instance, their catch represented the total of the first 17 numbers.
Catholicism also seems unlikely to explain the Italian superstition. If religion were responsible, a similar fear would presumably be widespread in other Catholic countries such as Mexico and the Philippines, where 17 does not carry the same reputation.
Instead, the story may reach back to ancient Rome. The Roman numeral for 17 was XVII. When those letters were rearranged as the Latin word VIXI, they formed an expression meaning “I have lived” or “my life is over.” That apparent connection between the number and death could have helped give 17 its later reputation.
Still, there is no clear evidence that Romans themselves regarded 17 as unlucky. Ancient writings contain 17th chapters, and the armies of Julius Caesar, Pompey the Great, and Caesar Augustus each included a 17th legion. Augustus’ 17th Legion was among three destroyed by Germanic tribes at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, one of Rome’s most severe military defeats. That event may also have contributed to the number’s later association with misfortune.
It remains possible that ancient Romans viewed 17 much as Italians do today. Roman culture was deeply superstitious about numbers, and some numerical beliefs, including the association between seven and good luck, have continued into Western culture.
But 17 was not universally viewed as unlucky. Some ancient Greeks gave the number a positive meaning. The Pythagoreans, philosophers associated with the teachings of Pythagoras, believed that the end of the world would bring the resurrection of 17 souls. The number also played an important role in their concept of musica universalis, which concerned the movement of celestial bodies.
A similar reverence existed in certain Islamic communities. Early Shiites regarded 17 positively, possibly for reasons similar to those of the Pythagoreans. The five daily prayers contain 17 rak’a, or liturgical gestures, while the call to prayer contains 17 words.
