Embryology · Head and neck: pharyngeal arches
Pharyngeal arches: nerve, muscles, skeleton and artery (the table) !
- Topic
The most-asked table in embryology: which nerve, which muscles, which bones and which artery come from each pharyngeal arch.
Updated 2026-11-01
See it in 3D: Trigeminal nerve (V) · Facial nerve (VII) · Glossopharyngeal nerve (IX) · Vagus nerve · Superior laryngeal nerve · Recurrent laryngeal nerves · Mandible · Malleus · Incus · Stapes · Hyoid bone · Thyroid cartilage · Cricoid cartilage · Arytenoid cartilages · Masseter · Temporalis · Stylohyoid · Digastric · Cricothyroid · Maxillary artery · Common carotid artery · Internal carotid artery · Aortic arch · Pulmonary arteries
What it is
Each working pharyngeal arch (1, 2, 3, 4 and 6) has a cranial nerve, a group of muscles, skeletal derivatives and an aortic arch. Knowing this table lets you work out the nerve supply of almost any head and neck muscle and makes sense of syndromes such as Treacher Collins or 22q11.2 deletion. It is the single most common embryology question on USMLE and residency exams.
Key facts
- The 1st-arch cartilage is Meckel's; the 2nd-arch cartilage is Reichert's.
- The mandible and maxilla form by membranous ossification around Meckel's cartilage, not from it.
- The hyoid has two origins: upper body and lesser horn from arch 2; lower body and greater horn from arch 3.
- The laryngeal cartilages come from fused arches 4 and 6; exam lists assign them together.
- Stylopharyngeus is the only muscle of the 3rd arch.
Derivatives of the pharyngeal arches
| Arch | Nerve | Muscles | Skeleton | Artery |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st (mandibular) | V3 (trigeminal) | Chewing, mylohyoid, anterior digastric, tensor tympani, tensor veli palatini | Malleus, incus, mandible, maxilla, sphenomandibular lig. | Part of maxillary a. |
| 2nd (hyoid) | VII (facial) | Facial expression, stapedius, stylohyoid, posterior digastric | Stapes, styloid, stylohyoid lig., lesser horn of hyoid | Stapedial and hyoid a. (regress) |
| 3rd | IX (glossopharyngeal) | Stylopharyngeus | Greater horn and lower body of hyoid | Common and proximal internal carotid |
| 4th | X: superior laryngeal | Cricothyroid, levator veli palatini, constrictors | Laryngeal cartilages (thyroid, with the 6th) | L: aortic arch; R: proximal subclavian |
| 6th | X: recurrent laryngeal | Intrinsic larynx (except cricothyroid) | Laryngeal cartilages (cricoid, arytenoids, with the 4th) | Pulmonary arteries; L: ductus arteriosus |
Clinical notes
- Superior laryngeal nerve injury (4th arch): weak voice that cannot reach high notes, from loss of cricothyroid.
- Recurrent laryngeal nerve injury (6th arch), for example in thyroid surgery: hoarseness from a paralysed vocal fold.
- The left recurrent nerve hooks round the ductus arteriosus (left 6th arch); the right one round the subclavian (right 4th arch).
- Peripheral facial palsy (2nd arch): loss of facial expression and of stapedius, with hyperacusis.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Which nerve supplies every muscle derived from the first pharyngeal arch?
The mandibular division of the trigeminal nerve (V3).
Which ossicle comes from the second arch, and which from the first?
The stapes is from the second arch; the malleus and incus are from the first.
What is the only muscle of the third arch, and which nerve supplies it?
Stylopharyngeus, supplied by the glossopharyngeal nerve (IX).
Which laryngeal muscle is not supplied by the recurrent laryngeal nerve, and why?
Cricothyroid: it comes from the 4th arch and is supplied by the superior laryngeal nerve; the recurrent nerve is the nerve of the 6th arch.
What does the left sixth aortic arch become?
The proximal left pulmonary artery and, from its dorsal part, the ductus arteriosus.
See it in 3D
The structures of Durgical's 3D anatomy where it is found.
- Trigeminal nerve (V)
- Facial nerve (VII)
- Glossopharyngeal nerve (IX)
- Vagus nerve
- Superior laryngeal nerve
- Recurrent laryngeal nerves
- Mandible
- Malleus
- Incus
- Stapes
- Hyoid bone
- Thyroid cartilage
- Cricoid cartilage
- Arytenoid cartilages
- Masseter
- Temporalis
- Stylohyoid
- Digastric
- Cricothyroid
- Maxillary artery
- Common carotid artery
- Internal carotid artery
- Aortic arch
- Pulmonary arteries
Related
- The pharyngeal apparatus: arches, pouches, clefts and membranes
- First pharyngeal arch (mandibular arch) and the trigeminal nerve
- Second pharyngeal arch (hyoid arch) and the facial nerve
- Third pharyngeal arch and the glossopharyngeal nerve
- Fourth and sixth pharyngeal arches: the larynx and the vagus nerve
- Pharyngeal pouches: tonsil, thymus, parathyroids and C cells
- Aortic arch arteries and their derivatives
- Tongue: development and innervation
Related conditions
Educational content on embryonic development; not a guide to prenatal diagnosis or to medicines in pregnancy and no substitute for a health professional's advice. No doses are given.
Sources: Embryology, Branchial Arches - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf (StatPearls Publishing (NCBI Bookshelf), 2023); Embryology, Aortic Arch - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf (StatPearls Publishing (NCBI Bookshelf), 2023); Langman's Medical Embryology, 13th ed., ch. 17: Head and Neck (Wolters Kluwer, 2015).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.