* Latin Roots: The letter "W" didn't exist in the Latin alphabet. Latin used the letter "V" to represent both the vowel sound /u/ and the consonant sound /w/.
* Anglo-Saxon Influence: When the Anglo-Saxons brought their language to England, they used the runic letter "ƿ" (wyn) to represent the /w/ sound.
* Norman Conquest: After the Norman conquest, the Latin alphabet became dominant. However, the Anglo-Saxons kept using "ƿ" for /w/.
* The "Double V" Evolution: Eventually, the "ƿ" was replaced with a combination of two "V"s – "VV" – to represent the /w/ sound. This is why we still call it "double-u" today.
* Modernization: Over time, the "VV" evolved into the modern "W." But the pronunciation "double-u" stuck!
So, the name "double-u" is a remnant of how the letter "W" came to be. It's a reminder of the history and development of the English alphabet.