occipital lobe - BrainInfo

occipital lobe (OL)

The term occipital lobe refers to one of six divisions of the cerebral cortex defined by dissection in the human ( Carpenter-1983 ) and the macaque ( Martin-2000 ). It is located at the back of the brains. Viewed from the side, it is separated from the parietal lobe dorsally and from the temporal lobe ventrally by an oblique plane through the parieto-occipital sulcus on the dorsal margin of the hemisphere and the preoccipital notch on the ventral margin. In some cases the lower part of the boundary is marked by a anterior occipital sulcus ( Duvernoy-1992 ).On the medial surface it is separated from the parietal lobe by the parieto-occipital sulcus and from the temporal lobe by the collateral sulcus. ( For an alternate definition adopted by some authors, see occipital lobe (Ono). Its gyral pattern in the human is perhaps the most variable of any of the six lobes. In most brains it contains five basic convolutions: the superior occipital gyrus, the middle occipital gyrus, the inferior occipital gyrus, the lingual gyrus, and the cuneus. The boundaries of the occipital lobe of the macaque are similar except that the rostral border as viewed from the side is well marked by the lunate sulcus of the human. The convolutions are similar except that the macaque has a single occipital gyrus where the human has superior and middle occipital gyri; and the macaque has a prominent annectant gyrus deep in an extension of the intraparietal sulcus into the occipital lobe. Equivalent structures are not found in the smooth cerebral cortex of the rat or mouse ( NeuroNames ).

Also known as: occipital lobe, Lobus occipitalis, occipital cortex, occipital region

NeuroNames ID: 140

All Names & Sources

1 of 15

Showing 15 synonym(s) - Use arrows to navigate

Showing 15 synonym(s)

Name:

lóbulo occipital

Language:

Spanish

Organism:

human

Source:

Carpenter-1994

Citation:

edicion 4, Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore; traducción de Editorial Medica Panamericana, Buenos Aires, efectuada por el Dr. Alejandro Kaufman

Source Title:

Neuroanatomía Fundamentos

Name:

lobo occipitale

Language:

Italian

Organism:

human

Source:

Rigutti-2000

Citation:

Giunti Gruppo Editoriale, Firenze, Italy 2000

Source Title:

Atlante di Anatomia

Name:

Okzipitallapen

Language:

German

Organism:

human

Source:

Schiebler-1999

Citation:

Eighth Edition, Springer Verlag, Berlin, 1999.

Source Title:

Anatomie

Name:

lobus oksipital

Language:

Indonesian

Organism:

human

Source:

Noback-1982

Citation:

Jakarta: Penerbit Buku Kedokteran EGC, 1982

Source Title:

Anatomi Susunan Saraf Manusia, Prinsip-Prinsip Dasar Neurobiologi

Name:

occipital lobe

Language:

English

Organism:

human

Source:

Carpenter-1983

Citation:

Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins Co., 1983

Source Title:

Human Neuroanatomy

Name:

occipital lobe

Language:

English

Organism:

Macaca fascicularis

Source:

Martin-1997

Citation:

Primate Information Center, University of Washington, Seattle, 1997.

Source Title:

Template Atlas of the Primate Brain

Name:

Lobus occipitalis

Language:

Latin

Organism:

human

Source:

Nomina-1983

Citation:

Fifth Edition, Williams and Wilkins Co., Baltimore, 1983

Source Title:

Nomina Anatomica

Name:

occipital cortex

Language:

English

Organism:

human

Source:

Crosby-1962

Citation:

New York: MacMillan, 1962

Source Title:

Correlative Anatomy of the Nervous System

Name:

occipital region

Language:

English

Organism:

rat

Source:

Bowden-1997

Citation:

Source Title:

A digital Rosetta stone for primate brain terminology

Name:

Language:

acronym

Organism:

Unspecified

Source:

NeuroNames

Citation:

University of Washington, Seattle, WA

Source Title:

NeuroNames

Name:

Hinterhauptslappen

Language:

German

Organism:

human

Source:

Schultze-1993

Citation:

Georg Theme Verlag, Stuttgart, 1993

Source Title:

Anatomisches Wörterbuch

Name:

Hinterhauptlappen

Language:

German

Organism:

human

Source:

Schiebler-1999

Citation:

Eighth Edition, Springer Verlag, Berlin, 1999.

Source Title:

Anatomie

Name:

corteccia occipitale

Language:

Italian

Organism:

human

Source:

Carpenter-1995

Citation:

EdiSes, s.r.l.- Napoli, 1995

Source Title:

Fondamenti di Neuroanatomia

Name:

затылочная доля

Language:

Russian

Organism:

human

Source:

Savel'ev-1996

Citation:

AREA XVII, Moscow, 1996.

Source Title:

Stereoskopicheskii Atlas Mozga Cheloveka

Name:

lobe occipital

Language:

French

Organism:

human

Source:

Dubach-1994

Citation:

Chapter 11 in Phylogeny and Development of Catecholamine Systems in the CNS of Vertebrates, WJAJ Smeets and A Reiner (eds.), University Press, Cambridge, England, 1994

Source Title:

Telencephalic dopamine cells in monkeys, humans, and rats

Illustrations

Showing 3 illustration(s)

drawing of
all aspects in
human

labeled line drawings of
sagittal section in
Macaca fascicularis

multiple views of
3D reconstruction in
Macaca mulatta

Species With The Structure

Equivalent By	Human	Macaque	Rat	Mouse
Topology	Has The Structure	Has The Structure	Does Not Have The Structure	Does Not Have The Structure

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Showing 6 record(s) - Use arrows to navigate

Showing 6 record(s)

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Yes

Organism:

Homo sapiens (human)

Their Name:

Lobus occipitalis

Source:

Nomina-1983

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Yes

Organism:

Homo sapiens (human)

Their Name:

occipital cortex

Source:

Crosby-1962

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Yes

Organism:

Homo sapiens (human)

Their Name:

occipital lobe

Source:

Carpenter-1983

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Yes

Organism:

Macaca fascicularis (Macaca fascicularis)

Their Name:

occipital lobe

Source:

Martin-1997

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Organism:

Rattus (rat)

Their Name:

---

Source:

NeuroNames

Basis:

Topology

Has Equivalent:

Organism:

Mus (mouse)

Their Name:

---

Source:

NeuroNames

Models Where It Appears

Structural CNS Model - Macaque

Brain structures of the macaque are illustrated in BrainInfo’s NeuroMaps macaque brain atlas. Structures are grouped by proximity in a hierarchy corresponding to the central nervous system hierarchy of NeuroNames ( Bowden-1995 Martin-2000 ). Structures in the NeuroMaps atlas are based on the segmentation of an MRI of the brain of a 3-year old male rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta). The atlas is most useful for targeting structures for implantating electrodes and chemtrodes. Updated 29 Oct 2025.