Final answer:
The intrinsic muscles of the tongue originate and insert within the tongue, enabling changes in size, shape, and position, and are essential for functions like swallowing and speech.
Step-by-step explanation:
The intrinsic muscles of the tongue are the specific muscles that originate and insert within the tongue itself, which allow one to change the size, shape, and position of the tongue. These muscles are the longitudinalis inferior, longitudinalis superior, transversus linguae, and verticalis linguae. The intrinsic muscles facilitate various functions, including swallowing and speech. Therefore, the correct answer to the question is c. Originate and insert within the tongue.