Terminology for

Skeletons
• THE SKELETAL SYSTEM'S FUNCTIONSThere are
approximately 206 bones in the human body, and
they serve to safeguard and maintain the shape of
soft tissues. The skeleton acts as a support
structure for the muscles, regulates and directs
internal pressure, and offers various soft tissues
anchor points for stability.
• SKELETON AXIALAxial Skeleton: What Is It?The 80
bones that make up your body's axial skeleton are
located in its core. This also applies to the skull's
bone (cranial and facial bone).
• What is the Axial Skeleton's primary purpose?

• Your brain, spinal cord, and internal organs are

supported and cushioned by your axial skeleton.
Your axial skeleton is where your body's muscles
that move your head, neck, and trunk are
attached.
Skull The skull consists of 8 cranial bones and 14 facial bones,
a total of 22 bones (table 6.1 and figures 6.12-6.17). The cranial
bones, or cranium (KRAY-nee-um), house and protect the brain.
Both the exterior and the interior of the skull have visible ridges
and lines. Most of these are locations where head and neck
muscles attach to the cranium. The cranial bones are connected
by immovable joints called sutures (see section 6.12). There are
four principal sutures: (1) coronal, (2) sagittal, (3) lambdoid,
and (4) squamous. The spe- cific sutures will be discussed along
with the bones they connect. All other skull bones are held
together by sutures as well and are named according to the
bones they connect
• Cranial Bones

-Has 8 bones of the cranium include: (1) the frontal bone,

(2 and 3) the 2 parietal bones, (4 and 5) the 2 temporal
bones, (6) the occipital bone, (7) the sphenoid bone, and
(8) the ethmoid bone
• Frontal Bone

- The frontal bone is connected to the two parietal bones

by the coronal suture. The frontal bone is most well-known
at the "forehead." It forms the roof of both the orbit of the
eye and the nasal cavity. The superior border of each of the
orbits contains a supraorbital foramen, or notch, which
allows passage of a blood vessel and nerve for the eyelid
and eye
• Parietal Bones

-The paired parietal bones form nearly half of the

superior portion of the skull (see figure 6.12). The two
parietal bones are joined by the sagittal suture and are
connected to the occipital bone by the lambdoid suture.
Along with the temporal bones, the parietal bones make up
the majority of the lateral portion of the skull.