My throat is sore but not in major pain. there's bumps on the back of my tongue near my tonsils. what is this?

We all have: Lumps on the back of our tongue. They are called papilla and usually are not noticeable except when inflamed/irritated. Your throat areas sound sore/irritated and the relationship to these newly noted "lumps" is easy to correlate. See your pcp for a look at your throat and to check your cough. It would be rare if the lumps are not these papilla. Hope you feel better soon!

Taste buds: These are some of the larger taste buds on your tongue.