Vomeronasal Organ
/ˌvoʊ.mərˈneɪ.zəl ˈɔːrɡən/noun
A sensory organ near the nasal cavity that detects certain chemical signals, especially in many animals.
Did you know?Also called Jacobson’s organ, it was discovered in 1813 and is strongly developed in many snakes, which use it to analyze scent particles collected on their tongues.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*nas-
“Nose; the projecting organ of the face”
Classical Latin
Latin
nāsus
“Nose”
Classical Latin
Latin
vōmer
“Ploughshare, the cutting blade of a plough”
17th Century
New Latin
vomer
“The ploughshare-shaped bone in the nasal septum”
19th Century
Anatomical Latin
organum vomeronasale
“Organ associated with the vomer and the nose”
1813
German
Jacobson-Organ
“The organ described by Danish anatomist Ludwig Jacobson”
Modern English
English
vomeronasal organ
“A chemosensory organ near the nasal cavity, especially prominent in many vertebrates”