What are the bones of the head

The main reason for the presence of so many bones in the head is protect the brain. Because of this, most of the bones in the head can appear to be a rounded box whose main goal is to isolate the brain from the outside world. However, the brain has to be in constant communication with that outside world, which means that the skull cannot be a uniform box and perfectly isolated.

In fact, if we think about the head, we will realize that, with the exception of touch that extends throughout the skin, all the other senses are located in it (sight, hearing, smell and taste). This means that the skull has to have certain openings through which the brain can communicate with the different organs that make up the senses, as well as the rest of the body.

In addition, both the mouth and the nose are entrances to the body that are located in the skull but have nothing to do with the brain, but with the respiratory and digestive systems respectively. In this way, because we cannot have a hermetic skull, it is necessary that a fairly complex bone structure that allows the brain to communicate with the outside, as well as the performance of other activities necessary for life such as eating and breathing.

The main bones of the head are as follows:

Frontal

It is one of the largest bones in the entire head and, as its name suggests, it is the bone that occupies the part corresponding to the forehead, which is why it extends from the upper part of the eye sockets until well into the forehead and the area where the hair begins.

Parietal

This bone is the largest in the head and occupies the top of the head. It extends from the edge of the front and reaches almost the end of the back of the head.

Occipital

It is the third bone that would complete the basic structure of the head after the frontal and the parietal. It is located in the back part of the head, near the nape of the neck. In fact, it extends through the base of the skull, and it is the one that joins the skull with the spinal column.

Temporary

We have two temporal bones, one on each side. It is the bone that is below the ear, and holds the parietal and occipital together.

Sphenoid

This bone is smaller in size than those mentioned so far. It can be understood as a continuation of the temporal that joins this with the frontal and with the front part of the skull, which corresponds to the face.

Zygomatic

It is the continuation of the sphenoid, it joins the frontal bone with the maxilla around the external parts of the eyes.

Nasal

Its name refers to the nose. It is located in the highest part of this and, basically, joins the frontal bone with the maxilla in the upper part of the nose.

Tear

Its name comes from tear, since it is the bone that is located in the inner part of the eye sockets, right where the tear glands are that allow us to cry.

Maxillary

It is the bone that closes the front of the skull at the top of the mouth.

Mandible

It corresponds to the lower part of the mouth, it joins on both sides with the temporal bone and, thanks to its mobility, we can open and close the jaw, which allows us to eat and drink to speak.

Although the bones mentioned above are the bones that make up the skull, the truth is that there are other smaller bones that, de facto, are also located in the head. A good example of these head bones would be teeth, that they are nothing more than small bones located as extensions of the maxillary bone and the mandible and that are responsible for our chewing.

Another example would be the ear bones (hammer, anvil and stapes), which are located in the middle ear and are responsible for the sound vibrations reaching the inner ear from the eardrum.

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