Imagine coming across an individual who looks exactly like what appears in the mirror each morning. Confusion and anxiety could plague the mind.

Having a twin is a possibility some students experience, but the knowledge of this look-alike is usually present.

A biological twin at birth may not be the origin of this mysterious person: a doppelgänger may be the cause of the disbelief.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a doppelgänger is quite simply someone who looks like someone else.

Even though the word is used loosely to describe lookalikes, the paranormal terms has a much more mysterious and intriguing connotation. According to the Manchester Paranormal Investigations, the majority of the supposed doppelgängers are experienced when someone catches an image of themselves in their peripheral vision.

The concept of a doppelgänger can be traced “back thousands of years and was present in many cultures of the past, holding a prominent place in ancient legends, stories, artworks and in books by various authors,” according to Ancient Origins.

Doppelgänger is a German word that means “double goer.” This concept has been based on a more spiritual basis which developed into many myths and superstitions over time.

     According to Ancient Origins, “[Doppelgängers] were generally considered as omens of bad luck or even signs of impending death – a doppelgänger seen by a person’s relative or friend was said to signify that illness or danger would befall that person, while seeing one’s own doppelgänger was said to be an omen of death.”

Though the legend of the doppelgänger originated as an apparition, the meaning has reached past the paranormal realm and has become a word to refer to a unknown “twin” of any person.

According to The Telegraph, a Dublin City University student named Niamh Geaney and her two friends started a challenge for themselves on social media. They had the goal of finding their closest lookalike, or doppelgänger, over the internet.

Searching proved victorious for Geaney: she found her “twin” after only 16 days. The article titled “Could you track down your doppelgänger?” outlines her success in finding her living doppelgänger as well as other incidents of stranger twins meeting.

Such an experience seems so far-fetched; however, many conspiracy theorists believe in the double’s existence, not solely as a random occurrence or coincidence.

If these individuals actually exist, many scientists questions if these doubles would even be recognizable in public.      

The Telegraph also presented that “science suggest that should not exist. Mathematically speaking, the number of variables in any face is so large that it would be virtually impossible to meet someone who looks identical to you. In fact, nobody has even worked out how to measure the probability. Dr Garrett Hellenthal at the genetics institute of University College London doubts it could even be done.”

Not only do many scientist reject the ideas of conspiracy theorists with the proof of statistics, but the lack of belief in the spiritual realm also has scientists ignoring the myth meaning of the word.

Although the possibility for these situations only seems possible in ghost stories, maybe society should start to question those outrageous people who look exactly like deceased celebrities.

Google Tupac’s doppelgänger from the film “Straight Outta Compton” for starters.

Photo courtesy of YouTube.com