What is "lingula"

Lingula \Lin"gu*la\ (l[i^][ng]"g[-u]*l[.a]), n.; pl. -l[ae] (l[i^][ng]"g[-u]*l[=e]). [L., a little tongue.]

1. (Anat.) A tonguelike process or part.

2. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of brachiopod shells belonging to the genus Lingula, and related genera. See Brachiopoda, and Illustration in Appendix.

   Lingula flags (Geol.), a group of strata in the lower Silurian or Cambrian system of Wales, in which some of the layers contain vast numbers of a species of Lingula.

n. (context anatomy English) Any of several tongue-shaped bony structures, especially that which forms the anterior border of the mandibular foramen.

Lingula is Latin for "little tongue". It can stand for:

• Lingula (genus), a brachiopod genus of the family Lingulidae, which is among the few brachiopods surviving today but also known from fossils over 500 million years old
• Lingala language, a Bantu language
• In anatomy:
  • the Lingula of left lung, one of the segments of the left lung with a tongue-shape
  • The Sphenoidal lingula, a part of the sphenoid bone
  • The Lingula of mandible, a ridge on the medial aspect of the body of the mandible, just anterior to the mandibular foramen
  • the Lingula of cerebellum
  • Taenia of fourth ventricle
  • In the vasiform orifice of the Aleyrodidae a small, tongue-like organ assisting in the excretion of honeydew

Lingula is a genus of brachiopods within the class Lingulata. Lingula or forms very close in appearance have existed possibly since the Cambrian. Like its relatives, it has two unadorned organo-phosphatic valves and a long fleshy stalk. Lingula lives in burrows in barren sandy coastal seafloor and feeds by filtering detritus from the water. It can be detected by a short row of three openings through which it takes in water (sides) and expels it again (middle).