apohyal

English

Etymology

From apo- + Ancient Greek ὖ (û, “the letter Y”) + -al.

Adjective

apohyal (not comparable)

1. (anatomy) Of or pertaining to a portion of the horn of the hyoid bone.
   • 1883, R. Morrison Watson, “Report on the Anatomy of the Speniscidae collected by H.M.S. Challenger during the years 1873-1876”, in Report on the Scientific Results of the Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger, page 207:

     In three species of Spheniscus, namely—Spheniscus magellanicus, Spheniscus demersus, and Spheniscus mendiculus, I found this muscle prolonged forwards to the great cornu of the hyoid bone, to the apohyal element of which it took a distinct attachment .

Noun

apohyal (plural apohyals)

1. The horn of the hyoid bone; ceratohyal.
   • 1882, William Yarrell, ‎Alfred Newton, ‎Howard Saunders, A History of British Birds - Volume 2, page 466:

     Each of these elongations is accompanied by a slender muscle, one end of which is attached to the tip of the apohyal and the other to the lower jaw, so that by its contraction the loop is straightened and the tongue thrust out:

   • 1882, Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London: 1882, page 300:

     The proximal of these is a small nodule of bone, .3 inch long, articulating below with the basihyal; it is called the "apohyal" by Pouchet, but, according to the nomenclature now ordinarily employed, must really be the cerato-hyal .

   • 2004, Herve Le Guyader, Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire: A Visionary Naturalist, page 162:

     But is the human hyoid nevertheless absolutely deprived of the lateral parts of the skull? That is not the case. A ligament coming from each small callosity or from the apohyal is prolonged laterally and reaches the extremity of the styloid apophysis.