一番
いちばん · ichiban · JLPT N5 · noun
best
🥇 一番 = one (一 ichi) + number/turn (番 ban): number one
一 is one and 番 means a number in a sequence or a turn, so 一番 is literally number one. From first in order it extends to most or best: 一番好き means like the most. Ichiban = itchy-bun? No: ichi (1) + ban (rank).
一 — single horizontal stroke
一 is one of the simplest pictographs in Chinese, depicting a single horizontal line to represent the number one. It has retained essentially the same form since oracle bone script over 3,000 years ago. By extension it also means 'first,' 'whole,' or 'same.'
番 — 釆 (animal tracks) on top + 田 (field) below
Originally a pictograph showing animal paw prints (釆) in a field (田), depicting tracks left by beasts. The early meaning related to taking turns or sequences, as tracks come one after another. It later extended to 'foreign' or 'barbarian,' and is now used as a measure word for occurrences or to mean 'number/turn.'