Answer
The tenth cranial nerve (CN X) is named the Vagus nerve. . The term "vagus" means means wanderer its original Latin . The vagus earns this because of its wide distribution from medulla oblongata in the cranium to the splenic flexure of the colon in the abdomen
Work Step by Step
The vagus originates in a medullary nucleus in the cranium, gives off an auricular branch to the ear, and exits through the jugular foramen. It passes through the neck at the base of which it splits into right and left branches--both branches enter the thorax.
In the thorax the Vagus innervates esophagus and heart --the recurrent laryngeal branch curves back superiorly to innervate the larynx in the neck The vagus enters the abdomen via the esophageal hiatus. It then innervates esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and colon up to the splenic flexure.
