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Embryology · Head and neck: pharyngeal arches

Tongue: development and innervation !

  • Embryonic structure

The tongue is built from swellings of several arches plus muscle that migrates in from the back of the head. That is why it has five different nerves.

Updated 2026-11-01

See it in 3D: Tongue · Hypoglossal nerve (XII) · Lingual nerve · Glossopharyngeal nerve (IX) · Vagus nerve · Superior laryngeal nerve · Facial nerve (VII) · Genioglossus · Hyoglossus · Epiglottis

What it is

The tongue forms from week 4 out of swellings on the floor of the pharynx: the body comes from the 1st arch and the root from arches 3 and 4, while nearly all its muscles migrate in from the occipital somites. That mix explains why general sensation, taste and movement travel in different nerves. It is a frequent nerve-supply question on exams.

Key facts

  • The 2nd arch leaves almost no mucosa in the adult tongue, but its nerve (VII) gives anterior taste through the chorda tympani.
  • The foramen cecum marks the origin of the thyroid.

Structure

  • Mucosa and connective tissue: from the pharyngeal arches (with neural crest).
  • Intrinsic and extrinsic muscles (genioglossus, hyoglossus, styloglossus): from the occipital somites.
  • Papillae and taste buds appear from about week 8.

What it becomes

  • General sensation of the body (anterior 2/3): lingual nerve (V3), via the 1st arch.
  • Taste of the anterior 2/3: chorda tympani (VII).
  • Sensation and taste of the posterior third: glossopharyngeal (IX).
  • Far back and the epiglottis: vagus, via the superior laryngeal nerve (4th arch).
  • Movement: hypoglossal (XII) for all muscles except palatoglossus (vagus).

Step by step

  1. Week 4: two lateral lingual swellings and the tuberculum impar appear (1st arch).
  2. Behind them forms the copula or hypobranchial eminence (arches 2, 3 and part of 4).
  3. Further back, a 4th-arch swelling forms the epiglottis.
  4. The lateral swellings grow, cover the tuberculum impar and form the body (anterior two thirds).
  5. Third-arch tissue overgrows second-arch tissue in the root (posterior third).
  6. Myoblasts from the occipital somites migrate in and form the muscles, bringing the hypoglossal nerve.
  7. The V-shaped terminal sulcus separates body and root; the foramen cecum sits at its apex.

Clinical notes

  • Ankyloglossia (tongue-tie): the frenulum reaches the tip and limits movement; it can make breastfeeding hard.
  • Macroglossia: in Down syndrome and Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome.
  • Hypoglossal nerve injury: the protruded tongue deviates towards the injured side.
  • Glossoptosis: tongue displaced backwards in the Pierre Robin sequence, because of a small mandible.

Test yourself

Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.

Which nerve carries taste from the anterior two thirds of the tongue?

The chorda tympani, a branch of the facial nerve (VII).

Why does the hypoglossal nerve, not an arch nerve, move the tongue?

Because the tongue muscles come from the occipital somites, which bring the hypoglossal nerve with them.

Which tongue muscle is not supplied by the hypoglossal nerve?

Palatoglossus, supplied by the vagus.

Which arch forms the body of the tongue, and which nerve gives its general sensation?

The first arch; general sensation comes from the lingual nerve, a branch of V3.

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The structures of Durgical's 3D anatomy where it is found.

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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, Tongue - 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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