首批
shǒupī · HSK 7
First batch
🥇📦 首 = head/first + 批 = batch; the head batch is the first batch out the door
首 — hair 丷 over face 自 (eye + nose)
首 is a pictograph of a head, originally drawn with hair on top and a face below (containing the eye element 目). It meant 'head' literally, then extended to 'chief, leader, first' since the head is the topmost and foremost part of the body.
批 — hand radical 扌 + 比 (compare, phonetic)
批 is a semantic-phonetic compound: the hand radical 扌 signals an action done with the hand, while 比 supplies the sound (bǐ → pī). Its original sense was to strike or slap with the hand, which extended to 'push aside,' then to 'judge' or 'comment on' (as in 批评), and finally to 'a batch' of things handled together.