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[13] Latin fors meant ‘chance’ (it came ultimately from Indo-European *bhrtis, a derivative of the same base as produced English bear ‘carry’, and hence signified etymologically ‘that which fate brings along’). Formed from fors was fortuna, which was used both for the personification of ‘chance’ as a goddess, and for ‘luck’ in general – and in particular for ‘good luck’. The notion of ‘good luck’ persists in most of the word’s modern descendants, including English fortune (acquired via Old French fortune) and fortunate [14], although Italian fortunale has opted for the downside of ‘luck’ – it means ‘storm at sea’. Another derivative of Latin fors was the adjective fortuitus ‘happening by chance’, from which English gets fortuitous [17].
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