Do you have a doppelganger? How do you know?
Wikipedia defines the phenomenon as “a supernatural double of a living person, especially one who haunts the doubled person.” Generally, the term is said to have German origins and in English the word is often translated to “double-walker.”
According to mythology, this alleged spirit double has plagued humanity since inception and is often thought to be a sign of bad luck or impending doom. In Ancient Egypt, the doppelganger was believed to possess the same memories and personality as their identical counterpart. In Norse mythology, the theory takes a supernatural twist in the form of a vardøger, a doppelganger who performs the same actions of its “twin” before the other person can do them. The concept has even reached the Middle East, where many Muslim countries believe in a karin or qareen. And here the doppelganger legend takes a wild turn, as Muslims who subscribe to the belief say this body double spirit can either be good or bad. It is also claimed a karin or qareen can be the same sex, race, and personality type as the other person it is joined with and even produce creepy spirit double children.
Not surprisingly, a vast amount of research has been conducted by scientists looking into the doppelganger phenomenon, a task made far less burdensome with the advent of genetic identification companies like Ancestry.com and 23&Me. According to an article published on www.scienceofpeople.com, a study was performed in 2022 comparing unrelated lookalikes. The study used advanced recognition algorithms to identify its subjects, and overtime researchers learned the study subjects had a considerably larger number of genetic similarities than previously thought. Reading between the lines, this means people who look alike might actually share similar genetic codes even though they are not blood related.
The study also found in addition to sharing specific genetic markers, the random lookalikes also displayed eerily similar characteristics in height and weight, smoking habits, education levels, and even in personality.
There is science behind how we humans recognize each other. Researchers say that by using a part of our brain called the superior colliculus [say that three times fast, I dare ya!] we can identify a face within 40 milliseconds. This is the reason lab coat wearers give for why a doppelganger naturally stands out in a crowd to us— we recognize faces before we identify whom they belong to— and from there it’s off to the doppelganger races!
Sometimes, we are too quick to draw conclusions our brain hasn’t had time to make. This can lead to false doppelganger positives, which might explain why in other studies when lookalikes are compared side-by-side their similarities often wane.
What do you think—is a benevolent or evil twin out in the world wreaking havoc with your face? Have you met your doppelganger? I know I’ve yet to meet mine!