一方
いっぽう · ippou · JLPT N3 · noun
hand
⚖️ 一方 = one + side: one side of it, versus the other
一 means one and 方 means side or direction. You state one side, then 一方 turns to the other side, giving on the other hand. It can also mean meanwhile, when the story moves to another side at the same time.
一 — single horizontal stroke
一 is one of the simplest pictographs in Chinese, depicting a single horizontal line to represent the number one. It has retained essentially the same form since oracle bone script over 3,000 years ago. By extension it also means 'first,' 'whole,' or 'same.'
方 — pictograph of a plow or two boats joined side by side
方 originated as a pictograph, traditionally interpreted as a plow handle or two boats lashed together. From the idea of paired boats it extended to mean 'side by side,' then 'square,' 'direction,' and 'region.' It was later borrowed for the abstract sense of 'method' or 'way.'