Anatomy of the Tongue

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Understanding The Anatomy Of The Tongue

The muscles of the tongue are a complex array of interdigitating fibers, responsible for the tongue's almost limitless array of movements, sizes and shapes. The human tongue is an organ composed of both intrinsic fibers, i.e. those which possess no direct connection to bony surfaces, and extrinsic fibers, i.e. those which do possess connections to bony surfaces.

A core region of related muscle fibers directed transversely and vertically contained within a sheath-like tract going from the front of the tongue backward broadly characterizes the muscles of the front portion of tongue. However, these muscle fibers are not ideally compartmentalized, but rather are interdigitated in a complex manner. Furthermore, these internal fibers are merged with other, external muscles originating outside the tongue, whose function is to modify tongue shape and position.

For those interested in anatomy of tongue the muscles of tongue are from a superior (top) direction (palatoglossus), postero-superior (back-top) direction (styloglossus), and inferior (bottom) direction (genioglossus and hyoglossus). The genioglossus is a notably large muscle that originates at the mental spine of the mandible (just behind the front teeth roots and the mid-portion of the lower jaw) and enters the tongue from below, in a fan-like projection, comprising a considerable portion of the posterior half of the organ.

The tongue is mainly composed of muscles. It is covered with a mucous membrane. Small nodules of tissue (papillae) cover the upper surface of the tongue. Between the papillae are the taste buds, which provide the sense of taste. In addition to taste, the tongue functions in moving food to aid chewing and swallowing, and it is important in speech. Changes in appearance of the tongue may indicate a primary tongue disorder or may be a symptom of other disorders.
Alteration In Tongue Size

Most common cause of enlarged tongue is increased body size. As we gain weight the size of the tongue increases.

***[However, some just naturally have large tongues regardless of weight and benefit the world greatly]

Courtesy of Mansoor Madani, D.M.D.

***Added by Lord Byron