占鳌头

占鳌头:

Literally means:

occupy the head of the turtle; come out first

Actually means:

鳌头, turtle's head; here it refers to head of the stone turtle standing in front of the royal court of ancient China.

Under the imperial examination system, the Number One Scholar among all candi dates would stand on the head of the stone turtle to wait for the official announcement of his title. Since there was only one candidate granted the honor, it was called Duzhan Aotou, that is, to occupy the turtle head for oneself.

The whole phrase means winning in a competition as champion. Commendatory.

鳌（大海龟）头，皇宫大殿台阶前面用石头雕刻的大海龟的头。 科举时代，规定考中状元的人必须站在这个大龟头上等待发榜，因为中状元只有一个人，所以这就叫做“独占鳌头”。 占鳌头，比喻在竞争中得到第一名。具有褒义色彩。