splenius capitis /splē″nē·əs/ [Gk, splenion, bandage; L, caput, head] , one of a pair of deep muscles of the neck and back. Arising from the nuchal ligament, the seventh cervical vertebra, and the first three or four thoracic vertebrae, it inserts in the occipital bone and the mastoid process of the temporal bone. It acts to rotate, extend, and bend the head.
