The middle temporal gyrus is the middle of the three horizontal ridges on the outer side of each temporal lobe, between the superior temporal gyrus above and the inferior temporal gyrus below. It corresponds largely to Brodmann area 21. [1]
The 3D brain needs JavaScript. The text below still says where the middle temporal gyrus is and what it does.
Slice
Opens cut by a front (coronal) slice through the middle temporal gyrus. Drag to turn, pinch or scroll to zoom, tap any part to name it; .
The outer surface of the temporal lobe has three horizontal gyri, superior, middle and inferior temporal; the middle one lies between the other two. [1][2]
The superior temporal sulcus separates it from the superior temporal gyrus above; the inferior temporal sulcus separates it from the inferior temporal gyrus below. [2][1]
At its back end it runs on into the angular gyrus of the parietal lobe, behind the end of the superior temporal sulcus. [3]
Paired: there is one in each hemisphere; this model lights both. [1][4]
What it does
It has been connected with processes as different as contemplating distance, recognising known faces, and accessing word meaning while reading. [1]
Brodmann area 21, which covers most of it, is thought in humans to take part in auditory processing and language; language work is concentrated in the left hemisphere in most people. [5]
The lateral temporal lobe also takes part in the visual “what” stream that recognises objects, running forward from the visual cortex along the lower temporal lobe. [6]
Other names
MTG, second temporal gyrus; Brodmann area 21 (BA21). [1][5]
Size
On this model the left middle temporal gyrus measures about 111 mm front to back, 34 mm top to bottom and 36 mm side to side (the box it fits in, not its volume); the right one is its mirror image. [4]
Centre of the left middle temporal gyrus compared with the centre of the left superior temporal gyrus: 11 mm further back, 14 mm lower; 18 mm apart in a straight line. [4]
Centre of the left middle temporal gyrus compared with the centre of the left inferior temporal gyrus: 11 mm further back, 11 mm higher, 10 mm further from the midline; 18 mm apart in a straight line. [4]
Facts describe anatomy and normal function only. The 3D model is the adult male BodyParts3D brain (credits and licence); real brains vary in size and shape, so its measurements describe one model, not anyone’s brain.