Franklin Dean
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body, running down the length of the thigh. It is believed to be called the honeymoon muscle because of its association with virginity and the way it helps the legs to cross—an old name for the muscle is Custos virginum or Protector of Virginity. The name sartorius comes from the Latin word for tailor, likely referring to the cross-legged position in which tailors sat, or the area of the inner thigh that tailors measure when fitting trousers.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Common name | Sartorius muscle |
| Scientific name | Musculus sartorius |
| Location | Sides of the body, starting on the anterior superior iliac spine of the pelvis and crossing the front of the thigh |
| Function | Knee flexion and internal rotation of the hip |
| Nicknames | Tailor's muscle, Custos virginum (Protector of Virginity), Honeymoon muscle |
| Nickname origin theories | Resembles a tailor's ribbon; location of the inferior portion of the muscle is an area tailors commonly measure; its active role when legs are crossed |
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What You'll Learn
- The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body
- It is a thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh
- It is also known as the Protector of Virginity due to the way it helps the legs to cross
- The muscle may be absent in some people
- The name sartorius comes from the Latin word for tailor
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body
The sartorius muscle is innervated by the femoral nerve. It may originate from the outer end of the inguinal ligament, the notch of the ilium, the ilio-pectineal line, or the pubis. The muscle may be split into two parts, and one part may be inserted into the fascia lata, the femur, the ligament of the patella, or the tendon of the semitendinosus. The tendon of insertion may end in the fascia lata, the capsule of the knee joint, or the fascia of the leg. The muscle may be absent in some people.
The sartorius muscle can move the hip joint and the knee joint, but all of its actions are weak, making it a synergist muscle. At the hip, it can flex, weakly abduct, and laterally rotate the femur. At the knee, it can flex the leg; when the knee is flexed, the sartorius medially rotates the leg. Sitting cross-legged demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius.
The sartorius muscle is also known as the "honeymoon muscle". This name may refer to the cross-legged position in which tailors once sat, with the Latin word "sartor" meaning "tailor". The inferior portion of the muscle may also be referred to as the "inseam" or the area of the inner thigh that tailors commonly measure when fitting trousers. Antique sewing machines required continuous crossbody pedaling, which would have given tailors particularly developed sartorius muscles.
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It is a thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body. It is a thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh in the anterior compartment. The sartorius muscle originates from the anterior superior iliac spine of the pelvis and crosses the front of the thigh, angling inward and ultimately ending on the medial side of the tibia. It runs obliquely across the upper and anterior part of the thigh in an inferomedial direction, passing behind the medial condyle of the femur and ending in a tendon. This tendon curves anteriorly to join the tendons of the gracilis and semitendinosus muscles in the pes anserinus, where it inserts into the superomedial surface of the tibia.
The sartorius muscle is unique in that it crosses two joints: the hip and the knee. This allows it to play a role in motion at both joints. At the hip, it can flex, weakly abduct, and laterally rotate the femur. At the knee, it is responsible for knee flexion, allowing the leg to bend. When the knee is flexed, the sartorius muscle medially rotates the leg. Sitting cross-legged is a position that demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius muscle.
The name "sartorius" comes from the Latin word "sartor," meaning tailor, and it is sometimes called the "tailor's muscle." This name likely refers to the cross-legged position in which tailors once sat while working. Similarly, in French, an older name for this muscle is "couturier" (seamstress or dressmaker), with a similar reference to "sitting as a tailor." Another hypothesis for the name is that it refers to the location of the inferior portion of the muscle being the "inseam" area of the inner thigh that tailors commonly measure when fitting trousers.
The sartorius muscle is also believed to have been called the "Custos virginum" or the "Protector of Virginity" in ancient times due to its role in helping women sit with their legs crossed. This name has been mentioned in a German article, although its source is unclear and difficult to verify.
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It is also known as the Protector of Virginity due to the way it helps the legs to cross
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body. It is a long, thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh in the anterior compartment. The sartorius muscle can move the hip joint and the knee joint. At the hip, it can flex, weakly abduct, and laterally rotate the femur. At the knee, it can flex the leg; when the knee is flexed, the sartorius medially rotates the leg. Sitting cross-legged demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius.
The name 'sartorius' comes from the Latin word 'sartor', meaning 'tailor', and it is sometimes called the 'tailor's muscle'. This name likely refers to the cross-legged position in which tailors once sat. Similarly, in French, an older name for this muscle is 'couturier' (seamstress or dressmaker), with a similar reference to 'sitting as a tailor'. Other hypotheses suggest that the name refers to the location of the inferior portion of the muscle being the 'inseam' or the area of the inner thigh that tailors commonly measure when fitting trousers. Another hypothesis is that the muscle closely resembles a tailor's ribbon. Antique sewing machines required continuous cross-body pedalling, which resulted in tailors having particularly developed sartorius muscles due to the combination of lateral rotation and flexion of the hip and flexion of the knee.
The sartorius muscle is also known as the 'Custos virginum' or the 'Protector of Virginity' because of the way it helps the legs to cross. This alternative name is mentioned in a German article, although no other references to it have been found.
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The muscle may be absent in some people
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body. It is a long, thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh in the anterior compartment. The muscle may be absent in some people.
The sartorius muscle can move the hip joint and the knee joint. However, all of its actions are weak, making it a synergist muscle. At the hip, it can flex, weakly abduct, and laterally rotate the femur. At the knee, it can flex the leg. When the knee is flexed, the sartorius medially rotates the leg. Sitting cross-legged demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius.
The muscle may be split into two parts, and one part may be inserted into the fascia lata, the femur, the ligament of the patella, or the tendon of the semitendinosus. The tendon of insertion may end in the fascia lata, the capsule of the knee joint, or the fascia of the leg.
The sartorius muscle is innervated by the femoral nerve. It may originate from the outer end of the inguinal ligament, the notch of the ilium, the ilio-pectineal line, or the pubis. The muscle receives 5 to 11 vessels originating from the superficial circumflex iliac, lateral femoral, deep femoral, descending geniculate, and femoral arteries.
There are slight adaptive ethnic differences in the width and range of the muscle belly and tendon of the sartorius muscle.
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The name sartorius comes from the Latin word for tailor
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body. It is a long, thin, superficial muscle that runs down the length of the thigh in the anterior compartment. The sartorius muscle can move both the hip joint and the knee joint, although its actions are weak. The name 'sartorius' comes from the Latin word 'sartor', meaning 'tailor'. It is sometimes called the 'tailor's muscle'. This name likely refers to the cross-legged position in which tailors once sat. Similarly, in French, an older name for this muscle is "couturier" (seamstress or dressmaker), with a similar reference to "sitting as a tailor".
There are other hypotheses as to the origin of the name. One is that it refers to the location of the inferior portion of the muscle being the "inseam" or area of the inner thigh that tailors commonly measure when fitting trousers. Another is that the muscle's appearance closely resembles a tailor's ribbon. Antique sewing machines required continuous cross-body pedalling. This combination of lateral rotation and flexion of the hip and flexion of the knee gave tailors particularly developed sartorius muscles.
Sitting cross-legged demonstrates all four actions of the sartorius: flexion, weak abduction, and lateral rotation of the femur at the hip, and flexion and medial rotation of the leg at the knee. The sartorius is innervated by the femoral nerve and may be split into two parts. One part may be inserted into the fascia lata, the femur, the ligament of the patella, or the tendon of the semitendinosus. The tendon of insertion may end in the fascia lata, the capsule of the knee joint, or the fascia of the leg. The muscle may be absent in some people.
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Frequently asked questions
The sartorius muscle is sometimes called the "honeymoon muscle" because it is active when one sits in a cross-legged position, a position that may be common during a honeymoon.
The name "sartorius" comes from the Latin word "sartor", meaning tailor, as the muscle is active when one sits in a cross-legged position, similar to tailors of the past.
The sartorius muscle is the longest muscle in the human body and runs down the length of the thigh. It plays a role in the movement of both the hip and knee joints.
One condition that can affect the sartorius muscle is pes anserine bursitis, an inflammatory condition of the medial portion of the knee that is characterized by pain, swelling, and tenderness.
The sartorius muscle is also known as the "Protector of Virginity" or "Custos virginum" due to the way it helps the legs to cross. In French, an older name for this muscle is "couturier", which means seamstress or dressmaker.
