Eudaimonia
/ˌjuː.daɪˈmoʊ.ni.ə/noun
A state of human flourishing, well-being, or living well.
Did you know?In Greek thought, eudaimonia was not a fleeting mood but a life blessed by a guiding daimon—an idea that made flourishing feel almost supernatural.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*deiwos
“godlike, divine”
Ancient Greek
Greek
εὖ + δαίμων (eu + daimōn)
“well; good + spirit, divine power, guiding spirit”
Classical Greek
Greek
εὐδαιμονία (eudaimonía)
“having a good spirit; prosperity, flourishing, blessedness”
Late Antiquity
Greek
εὐδαιμονία
“a philosophical ideal of the good life and human flourishing”
Modern English
English
eudaimonia
“flourishing well-being, especially in Aristotelian philosophy”