History of Serendipity Day
The word serendipity was coined in the mid 1700s by a man named Horace Walpole. In a letter to a friend, he explained how he had created the term from a Persian fairy tale known in English as The Three Princes of Serendip.
The story tells of three princes who were banished from the kingdom of Serendip (another term for Sri Lanka) in order to have a chance to prove their worth.
As they wander the world, “serendipitous” moments occur to them time after time, in a rather unbelievable amount.
In fact, it is much like many children’s stories in that the characters often just happen to run across the perfect place or the clue to solve the mystery. Or it could be likened to old, corny superhero movies, where they just happen to have the antidote to the problem lying around!
In other words, it seems that Walpole first created the word serendipity as some mild ridicule of these “happy accidents” and now the term is a favorite inspirational line everywhere: “seek serendipity!”