Serendib (also spelled Serendip) is an old name for the island nation Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon. Coined by English writer Horace Walpole in 1754, the word serendipity refers to the heroes of a Persian fairy tale, The Three Princes of Serendip, who wandered freely and were forever making fortunate discoveries by chance through accidents and sagacity.
“The Three Princes of Serendip, first published in Italian in 1557 by Michele Tramezzino was translated by Cristoforo Armeno from Persian.”
Encyclopedia Britannica informs us that “the name Serendib is a corruption of the Sanskrit compound Siṃhaladvīpa (“Dwelling-Place-of-Lions Island”). The Arabs are thought to have borrowed the name from Indians with whom they traded. The name, Arabic in origin, was in use as early as 361 C.E. In the West, it is best known to speakers of English through the word serendipity, which has come to mean “happy accidents.”
Incidentally, Sri Lanka is one of the largest tea producers in the world. In 1995 Tomislav Podreka and Linda Villano founded a specialty tea company which seemed to have been fated ~ so much leading up to its formation happened accidentally. As both were quite bookish and fond of word play, the name could only be SerendipiTea.