Brodmann area 22 is a Brodmann's area that is cytoarchitecturally located in the posterior superior temporal gyrus of the brain. In the left cerebral hemisphere, it is one portion of Wernicke's area. The left hemisphere BA22 helps with generation and understanding of individual words. On the right side of the brain, BA22 helps to discriminate pitch and sound intensity, both of which are necessary to perceive melody and prosody. Wernicke's area is active in processing language and consists of the left Brodmann area 22 and Brodmann area 40, the supramarginal gyrus.
It is bounded rostrally by Brodmann area 38, medially by Brodmann area 42, ventrocaudally by Brodmann area 21, and dorsocaudally by Brodmann area 40, and Brodmann area 39. These cortical regions surround the lower left posterior Sylvian fissure.