双子
ふたご · futago · JLPT N3 · noun
twins
👯 双子 = pair + child; futa- is the two in futatsu, go is ko, child
futago is futa (two, the same root as futatsu) + go, which is ko (child) voiced. Read literally, it is two children. The kanji say the same thing: 双 means a pair and 子 means child.
双 — two 又 (right hands) side by side
Originally written 雙 with two 隹 (short-tailed birds) over 又 (hand), depicting a pair of birds held in one hand, hence 'pair' or 'two'. The modern simplified form 双 keeps just two 又 hands side by side as a visual shorthand for 'a pair'. Meaning broadened to 'double' or 'even-numbered'.
子 — pictograph of a baby/child with arms out
子 began as a pictograph of a swaddled infant with a large head and outstretched arms, originally meaning 'baby' or 'child.' From there it broadened to 'son,' 'offspring,' and a respectful suffix for masters like 孔子 (Confucius). It also became one of the twelve earthly branches.