Diciassette, Seventeen, XVII

I'm sure you all haven't noticed, but I had 13 blog followers for several weeks. At first I thought eh, 13 no big deal as I'm not very superstitious. Then I got to thinking, hey, I'm in Italy now and 13 is lucky. Well, maybe it's lucky, but it's not unlucky like back at home. 

One of those interesting tidbits gained in Intercultural Relations was the fact that the number 17 is unlucky in Italy. Why? Well after some further research I found the following information:

• When written as a Roman number 17 turns into XVII. With a quick shuffle it turns into VIXI. So what? Well, if you read Latin it translates to "I have lived" which you know, means you're dead. 
• Friday the 17th doesn't have quite the same ring to it but the same applies and since Friday was the day Jesus was crucified, it's really unlucky.
• It gets worst! If the 17th falls on a Friday in November you may as well not get out of bed. Why? November is "the month of the deceased" due to the 2 Nov holiday that pays memorial to the deceased.

So there you have it...why XVII is unlucky here in Italy. File it away for your next trivia night!