Glossary of terms commonly found in Stoic philosophy.

A

; adiaphora: ἀδιάφορα: indifferent things, neither good nor bad. ;agathos: ἀγαθός: good, proper object of desire. ;anthrôpos: ἄνθρωπος: human being, used by Epictetus to express an ethical ideal. ; apatheia: ἀπάθεια: serenity, peace of mind, such as that achieved by the Stoic sage. ;aphormê: ἀφορμή: aversion, impulse not to act (as a result of ekklisis). Opposite of hormê. ;apoproêgmena: ἀποπροηγμένα: dispreferred things. Morally indifferent but naturally undesirable things, such as illness. Opposite of proêgmena. ; aretê: ἀρετή: Virtue. Goodness and human excellence. ;askêsis: ἄσκησις: disciplined training designed to achieve virtue. ;

ataraxia In Ancient Greek philosophy, ( Greek: , from indicating negation or absence and with the abstract noun suffix ), generally translated as , , , or , is a lucid state of robust equanimity characterized by ongoing freedom from distress and wo ...

: ἀταραξία: tranquillity, untroubled by external things. ; autarkeia: αὐτάρκεια: self-sufficiency, mental independence of all things.

D

; daimôn: δαίμων: divine spirit within humans. ; diairesis: διαίρεσις: analysis, division into parts. Used when distinguishing what is subject to our power of choice from what is not. ;dikaiosyne: δικαιοσύνε: justice, "consonant with the law and instrumental to a sense of duty" (Diogenes Laertius 7.98). One of the four virtues (justice, courage, temperance, wisdom/prudence). ;

dogma Dogma, in its broadest sense, is any belief held definitively and without the possibility of reform. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Judaism, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, or Islam ...

: δόγμα: principle established by reason and experience. ;

doxa Doxa (; from verb ) Liddell, Henry George, and Robert Scott. 1940.δοκέω" In ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', edited by H. S. Jones and R. McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. – via Perseus Project. is a common belief or popular opinion. In ...

: δόξα: belief, opinion.

E

;ekklisis: ἔκκλισις: aversion, inclination away from a thing. Opposite of orexis. ; ekpyrôsis: ἐκπύρωσις: cyclical conflagration of the Universe. ;eph' hêmin: ἐφ' ἡμῖν: up to us, what is in our power, e.g. the correct use of impressions. ; epistêmê: ἐπιστήμη: certain and true knowledge, over and above that of katalêpsis. ;

eudaimonia Eudaimonia (; ) is a Greek word literally translating to the state or condition of ''good spirit'', and which is commonly translated as ''happiness'' or ''Well-being, welfare''. In the works of Aristotle, ''eudaimonia'' was the term for the hig ...

: εὐδαιμονία: happiness, well-being. ;eupatheia: εὐπάθεια: good feeling (as contrasted with pathos), occurring in the Stoic sage who performs correct (virtuous) judgements and actions.

H

;hêgemonikon: ἡγεμονικόν: ruling faculty of the mind. ;heimarmenê: εἱμαρμένη: fate, destiny. ; hormê: ὁρμή: positive impulse or appetite towards an object (as a result of orexis). Opposite of aphormê. ; hylê: ὕλη: matter, material.

K

;kalos: κάλος: beautiful. Sometimes used in a moral sense: honourable, virtuous. ; katalêpsis: κατάληψις: clear comprehension and conviction. ; kathêkon: καθῆκον: duty, appropriate action on the path to Virtue. ; kosmos: κόσμος: order, world, universe.

L

;logikos: λογικός: rational. ;

logos ''Logos'' (, ; ) is a term used in Western philosophy, psychology and rhetoric, as well as religion (notably Logos (Christianity), Christianity); among its connotations is that of a rationality, rational form of discourse that relies on inducti ...

: λόγος: reason, explanation, word, argument. Also, the ordering principle in the kosmos. ;logos spermatikos: λόγος σπερματικός: the generative principle of the Universe which creates and takes back all things.

N

;nomos: νόμος: law, custom.

O

;oiêsis: οἴησις: opinion, usually arrogant or self-conceited. ; oikeiôsis: οἰκείωσις: self-ownership and extension. The process of self-awareness in all animals, which in humans leads to a sense of community. ;

orexis ''Movement of Animals'' (or ''On the Motion of Animals''; Greek Περὶ ζῴων κινήσεως; Latin ''De Motu Animalium'') is one of Aristotle's major texts on biology. It sets out the general principles of animal locomotion In etho ...

: ὄρεξις: desire, inclination towards a thing. Opposite of ekklisis. ;

ousia ''Ousia'' (; ) is a philosophical and theological term, originally used in ancient Greek philosophy, then later in Christian theology. It was used by various ancient Greek philosophers, especially Aristotle, as a primary designation for philoso ...

: οὐσία: substance, being.

P

;

paideia ''Paideia'' ( /paɪˈdeɪə/; also spelled ''paedeia''; ) referred to the rearing and education of the ideal member of the ancient Greek polis or state. These educational ideals later spread to the Greco-Roman world at large, and were called ''h ...

: παιδεία: training, education. ; palingenesia: παλιγγενεσία: periodic renewal of the world associated with ekpyrôsis. ;

pathos Pathos appeals to the emotions and ideals of the audience and elicits feelings that already reside in them. ''Pathos'' is a term most often used in rhetoric (in which it is considered one of the three modes of persuasion, alongside ethos and ...

: πάθος: passion or emotion, often excessive and based on false judgements. ; phantasiai: φαντασία: impression, appearance, the way in which something is perceived. ;

phronesis In ancient Greek philosophy, () refers to the type of wisdom or intelligence concerned with practical action. It implies good judgment and excellence of character and habits. In Aristotelian ethics, the concept is distinguished from other words ...

: φρόνησις: prudence, practical virtue and practical wisdom, or, colloquially, sense (as in "good sense", "horse sense"). ;

physis Physis (; ; pl. physeis, φύσεις) is a Greek philosophical, theological, and scientific term, usually translated into English—according to its Latin translation "natura"—as "nature". The term originated in ancient Greek philosophy, a ...

: φύσις: nature. ;

pneuma ''Pneuma'' () is an ancient Greek word for "breathing, breath", and in a religious context for "spirit (animating force), spirit". It has various technical meanings for medical writers and philosophers of classical antiquity, particularly in rega ...

: πνεῦμα: air, breath, spirit, often as a principle in Stoic physics. ;proêgmena:προηγμένα: preferred things. Morally indifferent but naturally desirable things, such as health. Opposite of apoproêgmena. ;proficiens: Latin for prokoptôn. ; pro(h)airesis: προαίρεσις: free will, reasoned choice, giving or withholding assent to impressions. ;prokopê: προκοπή: progress, on the path towards wisdom. ;prokoptôn: προκόπτων: Stoic disciple. A person making progress. Even though one has not obtained the wisdom of a sage; when appropriate actions are increasingly chosen, fewer and fewer mistakes will be made, and one will be prokoptôn, making progress. ;prolêpsis: πρόληψις: preconception possessed by all rational beings. ;prosochē: προσοχή: attitude and practice of attention, mindfulness. State of continuous, vigilant, and unrelenting attentiveness to oneself (prohairesis) ;psychê: ψυχή: mind, soul, life, living principle.

S

;

sophos Sophos Limited is a British security software and hardware company. It develops and markets managed security services and cybersecurity software and hardware, such as managed detection and response, incident response and endpoint security s ...

: σοφός: wise person, virtuous sage, and the ethical ideal. ;synkatathesis (sunkatathesis): συγκατάθεσις: assent, approval to impressions, enabling action to take place. ;sympatheia: συμπάθεια: sympathy, affinity of parts to the organic whole, mutual interdependence.

T

; technê: τέχνη: craft, art. The practical application of knowledge, especially epistêmê. ;

telos Telos (; ) is a term used by philosopher Aristotle to refer to the final cause of a natural organ or entity, or of human art. ''Telos'' is the root of the modern term teleology, the study of purposiveness or of objects with a view to their aims, ...

: τέλος: goal or objective of life. ;theôrêma: θεώρημα: general principle or perception. ;theos: θεός: god; associated with the order in the Universe. ;tonos: τόνος: tension, a principle in Stoic physics causing attraction and repulsion, and also the cause of virtue and vice in the soul.

References

* Devettere, R., ''Glossary'', in ''Introduction to Virtue Ethics: Insights of the Ancient Greeks'', pp. 139–154. Georgetown University Press. (2002). * Haines, C., ''Glossary of Greek terms'', in ''Marcus Aurelius'', pp. 411–416. Loeb Classical Library. (1916). * Inwood, B., Gerson L., ''Glossary'', in ''Hellenistic Philosophy: Introductory Readings'', pp. 399–409. Hackett Publishing. (1997). * Long, A. A., ''Glossary'', in ''A Stoic and Socratic Guide to Life'', pp. 275–276. Oxford University Press. (2002) * Schofield, M., ''Index and Glossary of Greek terms'', in ''The Stoic Idea of the City'', pp. 171–172. Cambridge University Press. (1991). {{Stoicism Stoic terms Stoicism Greek words and phrases Wikipedia glossaries using description lists