Doppelgänger

Have you ever found on the streets, or on social media, someone who looks exactly like you? Creepy, right? It feels as if you have a strange connection with them… and that's the origin of the term "Doppelgänger" or "ghostly double", an idea that has always been present in pop culture.

The truth is that, with so many humans living in the world, this is just a matter of probability. It is said that each person has about seven doubles in the entire world, but we only have a 10% probability of ever bumping into one of them… Just like it happened to Umberto I, the king of Italy in the beginning of the 20th century. They say that he was dining at a restaurant, when he noticed that the owner was physically very similar to him…however, the coincidences didn't end there: They had the same name, were born the same day in the same city of Turin and got married on the same day, each with a woman named Margherita! Also, the innkeeper opened his

restaurant the same day the king was crowned… but on the day after their encounter, they both died: The innkeeper died due to an accidental shot from a hunter, and the king was shot dead by an anarchist.

A terrifying coincidence, isn't it? And the thing is that, according to ancient legends, seeing your Doppelgänger, which means "double walker", was a bad omen – even a premonition of your own death!

However, this wasn't exclusive to the Nordic myths: In Ancient Egypt existed something called "ka", a double of the spirit that would stay in the body so long as it was mummified. Unlike the soul, the ka was tangible, would conserve the memories of the deceased, and would feed off the offerings left at the tomb.

From mythology, the Doppelgänger idea also jumped into literature: The term was popularized by the German writer Jean-Paul in the novel “Siebenkäs”.The protagonist, miserable in his marriage, asks his best friend for advice, who happens to be very similar to him physically. His friend convinces the protagonist to fake his own death so that the friend can take the protagonist's place being with the wife.

And of course, the most famous Doppelgänger tale is without a doubt "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson. In this story, Dr. Jekyll is a gentlemanly scientist who discovers a potion that transforms him into an evil version of himself, with an uncontrollable urge to commit crimes. Nowadays, with the communication tools, we have at our disposal, the concept of doppelgangers has not changed, and has become more of something curious than something scary.

A great example is that of Niamh Geaney, an Irish woman who bet to her friends that she would eventually find her double. And thanks to Facebook, she discovered a woman named Karen who looked just like her, and who also happened to live just a few minutes from her! The video that immortalized her encounter accumulated more than 9 million views on YouTube and Niamh didn't stop there! After that, she created the website TwinStrangers.com to help other people find their doubles!

And although the Doppelgänger idea has more focus on fiction, knowing that someone out there exists who is physically identical to us can be a bit creepy… as if we were losing our identity…but fear not homies! Remember that what makes YOU truly unique, exists within YOUR OWN SELF! ❤

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