I'm not Italian, but I've never heard one of my Italian friends talk about even numbers being unlucky. However, 17 is considered very unlucky for many Italians. This is because in Roman numerals, 17 is 'XVII'. This letters can be turned around to read 'vixi', which in ancient Latin translates as "I have lived.", which implies "I am dead". As a consequence, in Italy, many buildings do not have a 17th floor and there is no room 17 in many hotels.