It may not be as big as 7-7-7, but thousands of couples are heading down the aisle Friday, hoping the date Aug. 8, 2008, brings them luck and an easy-to-remember anniversary date.

The number eight has long been considered fortuitous in China, where people pay extra to have it in phone numbers and license plates — and the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympic Games falls on Aug. 8.

“We chose the date because eight has always been our lucky number,” said upcoming bride Denise Becker, 26, a middle school teacher in East Northport, N.Y. She and her fiance always found themselves in Seat 8, Row 8, at movie theaters with eight screens.

Another 8-8-08 bride, Stacy Ebert, 34, of Surprise, Ariz., has a long relationship with the number.

“I like the way it looks, that it’s continuous,” said Ebert, a Home Depot cashier. “We waited until 2008 because I like eight. Otherwise we would have gotten married earlier.”

In China, the pronunciation of the word eight sounds like the phrase for great fortune, said Han-Chia Li, an instructor of Chinese at the University of Mississippi. A reported record 9,000 Chinese couples plan to tie the knot that day.

The number eight has significance beyond great fortune. Eight is the atomic number for oxygen. There are eight days of Hanukkah. The symbol for infinity takes on the shape of eight, and there are eight planets in our solar system (Pluto was demoted).

In the United States, the wedding and gift registry site WeddingChannel.com has seen a 213 percent increase in weddings for Aug. 8, 2008, compared with the same Friday last year, Aug. 10, said Summer Krecke, deputy editor.

Many marrying couples are carrying the numerical theme further than just the date, with eight-course dinners, eight bridesmaids and first dances at 8:08 p.m.