両方
りょうほう · ryouhou · JLPT N4 · noun
side
⚖️ 両方 = both (両) + direction/side (方): both sides
両 means both or a pair, as in 両親 (both parents) and 両手 (both hands). 方 means direction or side. Put together, ryou-hou is literally both sides, so it covers both things or both parties.
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.'