先着
せんちゃく · senchaku · JLPT N1 · noun
arrival
🏁 先 (first) + 着 (arrival) = senchaku: first arrival
先 (sen) means before or first, and 着 (chaku) means arrival. Together they form 先着, the first to arrive. The same 着 appears in 到着 (tōchaku), arrival.
先 — 𠂉 (person variant) on top + 儿 (legs) below
先 originally depicted a person with a foot or step shown above the legs 儿, suggesting someone walking ahead. From this image of going before others came the meanings 'first,' 'earlier,' and 'ahead.' The modern shape preserves the 'legs' radical underneath.
着 — sheep 羊 (top) + eye 目 (bottom)
着 originated as a variant of 著, which depicted plants emerging visibly above ground (grass radical 艹 over 者). Over time 着 split off to carry meanings like 'attach,' 'wear,' or a verb suffix marking ongoing action (zhe), while 著 kept senses like 'manifest' or 'author.'