Eudaimonia does certainly play an important role in Aristotle's Nicomachean (and Eudemian) Ethics, but he is not the first (nor the last) philosopher to use that term.
Democritus, the fifth-century natural philosopher, is the first to argue that eudaimonia does not consist of external goods. Plato claims that the person who is just and virtuous will be happy (eudaimon)—this requires both that the parts of the soul be in harmony (Republic) and that the individual approximate the divine harmony of the universe (Timaeus).
For Aristotle, there are two kinds of eudaimonia—the ultimate is the godlike virtue of theoria (contemplation) as laid out in Book X of the Nicomachean Ethics. However, the eudaimonia attainable by humans consists in exercising phronesis (practical wisdom) and living a life that involves not only exercising non-intellectual virtues, but also involves external goods and relationships.
It is important to note that, even though the term is commonly translated as "happiness," it does not mean pleasure or subjective contentment but is better understood as complete fulfillment. For these reasons, the word is often best translated as "flourishing" or "well-being."
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