One to four nodes lying along the external jugular vein; they drain the skin and superficial structures over the region of the sternocleidomastoid muscle and send efferent vessels to the deep lateral cervical lymph nodes.
The cervical lymph nodes are located in the neck. They are divided into two sets: superficial and deep. There are three sets of superficial lymph glands: the submaxillary, near the jaw, the suprahyoid, near the hyoid bone in the throat, and the cervical which are located along the course of the external jugular vein. The deep cervical glands are large glands that are situated near the pharynx, esophagus, and trachea. When you have a sore throat, white blood cells mass together in these nodes to fight the infection, which is why your throat will often feel swollen and tender.