Adam's apple

The Adam's apple, or laryngeal prominence, is a feature of the human neck, and is the lump or protrusion formed by the angle of the thyroid cartilage surrounding the larynx seen especially in males.

Adam's apple
Front view of the Adam's apple (laryngeal prominence)
Details
Precursor4th and 6th pharyngeal arches
Identifiers
LatinProminentia laryngea
TAA06.2.02.003
FMA55304
Anatomical terminology

Structure

The structure of the Adam's apple forms a bump under the skin. It is typically larger in adult males, in whom it is usually clearly visible and palpable. In females, the bump is much less visible and is hardly perceived on the upper edge of the thyroid cartilage.[1]

Sex difference

An Adam's apple is usually a feature of adult males, because its size in males tends to increase considerably during puberty. [2]

Its development is considered a secondary sexual characteristic of males that appears as a result of hormonal activity.

Function

The Adam's apple, in relation with the thyroid cartilage which forms it, helps protect the walls and the frontal part of the larynx, including the vocal cords (which are located directly behind it).

Another function of the Adam's apple is related to the deepening of the voice. During adolescence, the thyroid cartilage grows together with the larynx. Consequently, the laryngeal prominence grows in size mainly in men. Together, a larger soundboard is made up in phonation apparatus and, as a result, the man gets a deeper voice note.[3][4]

Society and culture

Cosmetic surgery to reshape the Adam's apple is called chondrolaryngoplasty (thyroid cartilage reduction). The surgery is effective, such that complications tend to be few and, if present, transient.[5]

Etymology

An example of male laryngeal prominence

There are two main theories as to the origin of the term "Adam's apple". The "Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable" and the 1913 edition of Webster's Dictionary point at an ancient belief that a piece of forbidden fruit was embedded in the throat of Adam, who according to the Abrahamic religions was the first man.[6] However, neither the Bible nor other Judeo-Christian or Islamic writings mention such a story. In fact, the biblical story does not even specify the type of fruit that Adam ate, though in the Western Christian tradition, the fruit is commonly portrayed as an apple.[7]

Linguist Alexander Gode claimed that the Latin phrase to designate the laryngeal prominence was very probably translated incorrectly from the beginning. The phrase in Latin was "pomum Adami" (literally: 'Adam's apple'). This, in turn, came from the Hebrew "tappuach ha adam" meaning "apple of man". The confusion lies in the fact that in Hebrew language the proper name "Adam" (אדם) literally means "man", and the word for "apple" is similar to the word "tafuach" which means "swollen", thus in combination: the swelling of a man.[8][9] Proponents of this version contend that the subsequent phrases in Latin and other Romance languages represent a mistranslation from the start.[10]

The medical term "prominentia laryngea" (laryngeal prominence) was introduced by the Basle Nomina Anatomica in 1895.[11]

In the American South, goozle is used colloquially to describe the Adam's apple, likely derived from guzzle.[12][13][14][15]

Additional images

See also

References

  1. "Laringe". Sisbib.unmsm.edu.pe. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  2. "Prominentia laryngea Medical Term Medical Dictionary". Medicine Online. Archived from the original on 2013-12-25. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. P. J. Bentley (1980), "Endocrine Pharmacology: Physiological Basis and Therapeutic Applications", CUP Archive, pág 240
  4. "Pubertad, nuestras diferencias". Esmas.com. Archived from the original on 2004-09-08. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  5. Wolfort FG, Dejerine ES, Ramos DJ, Parry RG (1990). "Chondrolaryngoplasty for appearance". Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 86 (3): 464–9, discussion 470. doi:10.1097/00006534-199009000-00012. PMID 2385664.
  6. E. Cobham Brewer (1810–1897). Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898. "Adam's Apple"
  7. George Crabb (1823), "Universal technological dictionary", Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, "Pomum Ada'mi"
  8. William S. Haubrich (2003), "Medical Meanings: A Glossary of Word Origins", ACP Press, pág 5.
  9. "Adam's apple". Medicine.academic.ru. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  10. Robert B. Taylor (2008), "White Coat Tales: Medicine's Heroes, Heritage and Misadventures", Springer, pág 82.
  11. Axel Karenberg, Amor, Äskulap & Co.: klassische Mythologie in der Sprache der modernen Medizin, Schattauer, Stuttgart 2006, S. 128-129.
  12. Morris, Evan (November 2008). "Goozle « The Word Detective". The Word Detective. Retrieved 22 December 2014. If we follow 'goozle' back a bit further, we come to an interesting intersection with a far more common word, 'guzzle.'
  13. Roy Blount Jr. (29 September 2009). Alphabet Juice: The Energies, Gists, and Spirits of Letters, Words, and Combinations Thereof; Their Roots, Bones, Innards, Piths, Pips, and Secret Parts, Tinctures, Tonics, and Essences; With Examples of Their Usage Foul and Savory. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 978-1-4299-6042-7. The Dictionary of Smoky Mountain English defines google (or goozle) as 'the throat, Adam's apple.'
  14. Roy Wilder (1 September 1998). You All Spoken Here. University of Georgia Press. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-8203-2029-8. Adam's apple; goozle; the projection formed by the thyroid cartilage in the neck.
  15. "Goozle". Directory of American Regional English. University of Wisconsin–Madison. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2014. gullet, windpipe, or Adam’s apple. [Varr of guzzle 1] chiefly Sth, S Midl
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