Italians are not superstitious. Italians are CAUTIOUSLY RESPECTFUL OF FORCES THEY CANNOT CONTROL. Friday the 17th (not the 13th) is the unlucky day. Purple is bad luck (actors refuse to wear it onstage). An open umbrella indoors invites death. A hat on a bed calls the priest (last rites — the priest puts his hat on the bed when he arrives). These are not rural folklore — Roman bankers, Milanese executives, and Florentine designers observe these rules.
1. Friday the 17th is unlucky. Not Friday the 13th. In Roman numerals, XVII can be rearranged to spell VIXI ("I have lived" = "I am dead"). Some Italian buildings skip the 17th floor. Alitalia had no row 17. 2. Never toast with water. Toasting with water = wishing death on everyone at the table. If you don't drink alcohol, toast with anything else (juice, Coca-Cola). 3. Don't put a hat on a bed. Priests place their hats on the bed when administering last rites → a hat on a bed = summoning death. 4. Never give an even number of flowers. Even numbers are for funerals. Always give odd numbers (except at funerals, where even is appropriate). 5. Purple is cursed. In Catholicism, purple is the liturgical color of Lent and mourning. Italian actors REFUSE to wear purple onstage (it brings bad luck to the production). Don't give purple flowers to an Italian.
6. Spilling olive oil is terrible luck. Worse than salt. Oil was historically more expensive than gold in southern Italy. 7. Spilling salt: Throw a pinch over your LEFT shoulder with your RIGHT hand to blind the devil (same as the rest of Europe — this one crossed borders). 8. Don't cross arms when toasting. Look everyone in the eye during the toast. Crossed arms = crossed fates. 9. Never seat 13 at a table. (THIS one is shared with the rest of Europe — the Last Supper had 13 at table). 10. Black cats crossing your path: Bad luck (shared superstition, but Italians take it more seriously than most).
11. Touching iron (tocca ferro). The Italian equivalent of "knock on wood" — touch iron to ward off bad luck. 12. The corno (horn charm) — red, twisted, worn as a necklace or hung from rearview mirrors. The most universal Italian talisman. 13. Malocchio (evil eye) — diagnosed with oil in water, cured by secret prayers. 14. Don't walk under a ladder. Universal, but in Italy it forms a triangle (symbol of the Trinity) — breaking it is blasphemy + bad luck. 15. Hearing a cat sneeze: Good luck (money is coming). 16. Itchy right palm: Money coming in. Itchy left palm: money going out.
17. Never compliment a baby without immediately saying "benedica" or touching the corno. Compliments attract the evil eye. 18. Breaking a mirror: 7 years of bad luck (universal). In Italy: bury the broken pieces in the garden under moonlight to shorten the curse. 19. Seeing a nun: Bad luck for the rest of the day. Touch iron immediately. 20. January 1 — the first person you see determines your year. If the first person you see on New Year's Day is an elderly man: good year. Young woman: uncertain. Priest or nun: terrible year. Neapolitans have been known to avoid leaving the house until they see the right person from the window.