'Support' is Latin for 'carry from below' — from 'sub-' + 'portare.' Physical weight became emotional backing.
To bear the weight of; to give assistance, encouragement, or approval to; to provide for financially.
From Old French supporter (to bear, endure, support), from Latin supportare (to carry from below, convey), from sub- (from below, up) + portare (to carry). The PIE root underlying portare is *per- (to lead, pass over, transport) — the same root that produced fare (to travel), ferry, port (a place where things are carried), and the -port- in transport, import, export. The metaphor is carrying something from underneath — bearing its weight upward. This physical image extended from architectural support (columns