Endoxa derives from the word
doxa (δόξα, meaning "beliefs", "opinions"). Whereas
Plato condemned
doxa as a starting point from which to attain truth,
Aristotle used the term
endoxain the sense of "commonplace", "everyday", "consensus"to identify a group or population's beliefs that had previously withstood debate and argument (and were, thereby, more stable than
doxa).