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How many movable vertebrae are in the human vertebral column?
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human skeleton
Front and back views of the human skeleton.
The human vertebral column contains 24 movable vertebrae. These are categorized into three distinct regions:
- Cervical vertebrae: 7 bones located in the neck.1
- Thoracic vertebrae: 12 bones located in the chest that articulate with the ribs.1
- Lumbar vertebrae: 5 robust bones located in the lower back.1
The remaining vertebrae in the human spine—the 5 sacral vertebrae and the 3 to 5 caudal vertebrae (which form the coccyx)—are fused and therefore not considered movable.1