It seems as though the state of being happy is very difficult to describe to someone without comparing it to other emotions. So what better way to find its true meaning than etymologically?
The OED gives three different definitions for the word:
a) "Good fortune or luck in life or in a particular affair; success, prosperity"
b) "The state of pleasurable content of mind, which results from success or the attainment of what is considered good"
c) "Successful or felicitous aptitude, fitness, suitability, or appropriateness; felicity"
The word derives from the Old Norse happ, meaning chance, hap, or good luck. This later passed into Middle English as the word hap. Happy in turn is the noun hap+the suffix y. Happiness in turn is the state of being happy.
So it seems as though happiness can in fact be defined, in a very logical way.
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