The word serendipity came from a Persian fairy tale

The Three Princes of Serendip is a Persian fairy tale where the princes were always stumbling upon discoveries by accident that was not part of their main quest.

Innovation is often serendipitous

References

How Innovation Works (p. 247).

The word serendipity was coined by Horace Walpole in 1754 to explain how he had tracked down a lost painting. He took it from a Persian fairy tale, 'The Three Princes of Serendip' […].