In my language, the root of the word zygos = yoke is used in many other words, which are related to the original meaning.
I copy some of them, from the dictionary :
zygaria = scales, balance, weighting machine
zygi = weighting, weight, weight of the plumb-line, or the plumb-line itself
zygiazo (verb) = balance, poise, hover over
zygizo (verb) = weight, turn the scale, weigh up, take stock, sum up, gauge, size up, ponder.
zygisma = weighing
zygos = balance, scales, yoke ( and double harness, for husband and wife...
)
zygoma = approach, coming together, drawing near.
zygomatic = zygomatic
zygono (verb) = bring/put/draw near, approach, come/go/get/draw near or close.
sin+zygia = conjugation, syzygy ( astron. )
sin+zygos = husband / wife
sin+zygikos = connubial
dia+zygion = divorce
hypo+zygion = beast of burden / draught, pack-animal
The two parts of this hitch, which are forcefully connected to each other, while they approach each other during pre-tensioning, seemed to me to justify this name.
In Germanic languages, like English, the etymology is the same. I copy, from Wikipedia :
The word "yoke" is believed to derive from Proto-Indo-European *yug?m (yoke), from verb *yeug- (join, unite). This root has descendants in almost all known Indo-European languages including German Joch, Latin iugum, Ancient Greek ζυγόν (zygon), Persian یوغ (yuğ), Sanskrit युग (yug?), Hittite 𒄿𒌑𒃷 (i?kan), Old Church Slavonic иго (igo), Lithuanian jungas, Old Irish cuing, Armenian լուծ (lu?), Romanian jug, etc. (all meaning "yoke"). The verb to subjugate derives from the Latin form.
Old English geoc "contrivance for fastening a pair of draft animals," earlier geoht "pair of draft animals" (especially oxen), from Proto-Germanic *yukam (cognates: Old Saxon juk, Old Norse ok, Danish aag, Middle Dutch joc, Dutch juk, Old High German joh, German joch, Gothic juk "yoke"), from PIE root *yeug- "to join" (see jugular). Figurative sense of "heavy burden, oppression, servitude" was in Old English.
Old English geocian "to yoke, join together," from yoke (n.). Related: Yoked; yoking.