Abstract
This review focuses on the localization and function of the neural center for speech motor control based on recent trends in re-evaluating the traditional views and our own brain imaging experiments using functional MRI. The first experiment with repetitions of short Japanese phrases indicated that the region in the inferior cerebellum for speech breathing and vocalization was more medial than that for articulation. The second experiment with changing and repetitive syllables revealed that the activity of the left anterior insula was found only in the task of changing syllables, and suggested that the insula was involved in phonetic encoding and motor planning.
