ventrális

Ventrális is an anatomical adjective used in several languages (notably Hungarian as ventrális and Latin as ventralis). It derives from Latin ventralis, meaning “of the belly.” In anatomy, ventral refers to the ventral surface—the side of the body that faces the abdomen in humans or the belly side in other animals. It is commonly paired with dorsal, which designates the back or upper surface. Depending on an organism’s orientation, ventral indicates the surface toward the front or underside.

Common usages include ventral surfaces or aspects of organs and structures: ventral surface of the brain, ventral view of an organism, ventral nerve roots and the ventral horn of the spinal cord, and the ventral nerve cord in many invertebrates. The term appears in clinical descriptions, comparative anatomy, and embryology to indicate location along the body axis.

Language notes: ventrális appears in Hungarian and other languages as a direct loan or calque; English ordinarily uses ventral rather than ventrális. The concept focuses on location rather than function, though it often implies an organ’s anatomical context—its belly or undersurface rather than a specific role. It is the opposite of dorsal and is used to describe orientation across a range of taxa and systems.