In recent years, the expression of desmin intermediate filament in muscle and tendon attachment brought about mechanical stress has been reported. Mastication and swallowing exercises can stimulate the growth of the tongue through functional load. However, the expression of intermediate filaments during development has not been investigated. Moreover, the relevance of the surrounding tissues to the development of the tongue is still unknown. Therefore, the expression of desmin in embryonic mouse tongue during development and the expression of vimentin in mesenchymal tissues were investigated by immunohistochemistry and Western Blot. Results revealed that at E11, there was no distinction between the tongue and mandible. Vimentin expression was detected in the entire tissue at E11 and the expression spread to the surrounding tissues over time. Desmin was not detected at E11 however, at E12, desmin expression was observed at the attachment of genioglossus and intrinsic muscle of the tongue which then became more intense and spread throughout the surrounding tissues. The IHC results coincided with Western Blot analysis. The results suggest that desmin expression at the site of intense mechanical loading plays an important function in mastication and swallowing.