The abdomen is the space inside your body that most people simply call the “belly” or “tummy.” In anatomical terms, it sits below the diaphragm (the breathing muscle under your lungs), above the pelvis, and in front of the spine. It’s a large internal cavity that houses many of your most important organs.

What’s inside

The abdomen contains several vital organs that handle digestion, filtering, and other essential jobs, including:

• Stomach — breaks down the food you eat
• Intestines — the small and large intestines, where nutrients are absorbed and waste is formed
• Liver — filters the blood and processes nutrients and toxins
• Other organs — such as the pancreas, spleen, gallbladder, and kidneys

Because so much happens here, “pain in the abdomen” (abdominal pain) is one of the most common complaints people bring to a doctor — and its causes range from the harmless to the serious.

How doctors map the abdomen

To describe exactly where a symptom is, doctors divide the abdomen into nine regions, like a tic-tac-toe grid laid over the belly. This shared map lets any clinician pinpoint and communicate a location precisely.

Top row:

• Right hypochondriac region
• Epigastrium (centre, just below the breastbone)
• Left hypochondriac region

Middle row:

• Right lumbar region
• Umbilical region (centre, around the navel)
• Left lumbar region

Bottom row:

• Right iliac region
• Hypogastrium (centre, lowest part)
• Left iliac region

So if a patient says “it hurts here” and points, the doctor can record it as, for example, the right iliac region — which is a classic location for appendicitis.

A note on related terms

In medical vocabulary, words referring to the abdomen often begin with coeli- or coelio- (from the Greek for “belly cavity”). For instance, coeliac relates to the abdominal region. Recognizing these roots can help you decode other medical terms you come across.

Disclaimer

This content is for general educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Abdominal pain can have many causes, some of them minor and some genuinely serious (such as appendicitis or internal bleeding). If you experience severe, sudden, or persistent abdominal pain — especially with fever, vomiting, or a rigid, tender belly — seek medical care promptly or call your local emergency number.