The hyoid bone (Lingual Bone) is a bone in the human neck, and is the only bone in the skeleton not articulated to any other bone. It is supported by the muscles of the neck and in turn supports the root of the tongue.

The hyoid bone is shaped like a horseshoe, and is suspended from the tips of the styloid processes of the temporal bones by the stylohyoid ligaments.

Function
The hyoid bone is involved in the production of human speech. It allows a wider range of tongue and laryngeal movements by bracing these structures against each other. It is not present in any of our closest living relatives, but it did exist in virtually identical form in Neanderthal man. That suggests, along with other anthropological clues of communication, that the Neanderthal employed some form of spoken language.


Fracture
Due to its position, the hyoid bone is not usually easy to fracture in most situations. Professional wrestler Lance Storm suffered such an injury in a match when Christian Cage struck his throat with a misplaced lariat (forearm strike)

In cases of suspicious death, a fractured hyoid is a strong sign of strangulation.