# What is the backbone called?

The backbone is called the vertebral column (spine). Gray's Anatomy (1918) describes it as a flexible column of 33 bones (vertebrae) stacked one on top of the other.

## What it means

- A flexible column of 33 bones (vertebrae) stacked one on top of the other.
- Grouped into 7 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 fused sacral, and 4 fused coccygeal vertebrae.
- Encloses and protects the spinal cord.

## Action steps

1. Runs down the midline of the back, from the skull to the coccyx.
2. Supports the head and trunk.
3. The intervertebral discs sit between adjacent vertebrae as cushions.

## Sources

- [Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body (1918)](https://www.bartleby.com/107/)

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