The human jaw comprises two parts, the upper jaw and the lower jaw. These two bony structures differ significantly from each other both in size and shape. While the upper jaw (lat.
Maxilla) is formed by a paired bone and is firmly connected to the skull bone, the lower jaw (lat. Mandibula) consists of a very large, compact bone portion and comes freely into contact with the skull via the two jaw joints. For this reason, the lower jaw forms the mobile part of the jaw, which is essential for the chewing process.
In general, there are two large parts of the skull, the facial skull and the cerebral skull. Those parts of the bones that surround the brain like a shell and thus fulfill a certain protective function are called the brain skull. Bones of the facial skull in turn define the basic features of the human face.
Belong to the facial skull: The upper and lower jaws are also anatomically counted as part of the facial skull. In contrast to the upper jaw, the lower jaw hardly fulfils any protective function. It is connected to the rest of the skull via the temporomandibular joints on both sides and is mainly responsible for chewing and, in interaction with the tongue, important for speech formation.
- Parts of the frontal bone
- The temporal bone
- The nasal bone
- The zygomatic bone
- The lacrimal bone
- The paired nasal concha
- The ethmoid bone and
- The plowshare leg
Lower jaw alignment
The lower jaw (lat. Mandibula) consists of a horseshoe-shaped bone structure, which forms its body (lat. Corpus mandibulae).
The front edge of the lower jaw forms the human chin. The large lower jaw body is continued upwards on both sides by a rising branch, the lower jaw branch (lat. Ramus mandibulae).
The body of the lower jaw and the ascending branches together form an angular structure, the mandibular angle (lat. Angulus mandibulae), which serves as the base and origin of various muscles involved in the chewing process. A basic distinction is made between three extensions of this bone of the facial skull.
The alveolar process (lat. Processus alveolaris) is located on the upper side of the maxilla, and the alveoli are embedded in it, small indentations that serve to accommodate the roots of the teeth. In the area of the ascending branch, a further process separates from the bone, the so-called articular process (lat.
Processus condylaris or Processus articularis). This in turn has a cylindrical joint head, which forms the movable part of the temporomandibular joint. The so-called muscular process (lat.
Processus muscularis) forms the attachment point of various muscles. In the area of the inner side of the lower jaw branch a small protrusion can be seen. This structure is known in anatomy as the bone tongue (lat.
Lingula mandibulae). It covers a small hole that runs across the bone of the lower jaw (lat. Foramen mandibulae) and functions as a point of passage for the mandibular nerve (nervus alveolaris inferior).
