Short latency evoked potentials following stimulation of the upper lip were recorded intracranially during neurosurgical procedures in 14 patients. In 10 patients, a suboccipital craniectomy provided direct access to the trigeminal root and the pons at the root entry zone. Direct recordings from the trigeminal root were characterized by a large triphasic potential at 2.4-2.7 msec. The latency of this potential increased as a result of moving the recording electrode proximally towards the brain-stem. The same potential could be recorded from the brain-stem surface at a latency suggesting an intra-axial presynaptic origin. A second component, N4.7, was recorded from over the most rostral aspect of the brain-stem in 3 patients and from the tentorium free edge in 4 patients. This potential of smaller amplitude did not show significant difference in latency or polarity at various electrode locations, suggesting a deep diencephalic origin remote from the recording electrode.