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Tim Maas
My understanding is that Thomas' name by itself comes from the Semitic word (Anglicized as "ta'am") meaning "twin", which indicates that "Thomas" may have been a nickname or title -- as indicated by the verse cited in the question, which says that he was "called" (rather than named) The Twin -- and we thus may not even know his actual given name. In any case, as far as I can determine, there is no contemporaneous indication (in the gospels or elsewhere) of whether he actually was a twin, or, if so, who his twin was. If he was not an actual twin, and if Thomas was not his actual given name, perhaps the name derives from a physical resemblance that he bore to someone else (either in his life prior to becoming an apostle, or in Jesus' circle of followers). But, again, there is no Scriptural indication of that.
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