Taste mapping

Taste mapping is a concept suggesting that different areas of the tongue are responsible for sensing specific types of tastes, such as sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. This idea originated from early research that proposed the tongue has dedicated zones for each taste. However, modern science shows that all taste qualities can be detected across the entire tongue surface, thanks to the overlapping distribution of taste receptor cells. While taste mapping helped inform initial understanding, it’s now understood that our tongue's taste receptors are more uniformly distributed, working together to perceive a wide range of flavors simultaneously.