Abstract The cerebral cortex is the outermost layer of gray matter that covers the two cerebral hemispheres. It is especially well developed in humans and is the part of the brain that is most closely associated with cognition and voluntary behavior. A basic knowledge of cortical anatomy is critical to understanding disorders of higher brain functions. This chapter discusses the anatomy of the cerebral cortex and its connections, history of the concept of cortical localization, functional maps, the concept of hierarchical cortical function, and Brodmann’s cytoarchitectural map. In addition, it describes cortical disconnection syndromes, corpus callosotomy, and agenesis of the corpus callosum.