The study of neurology and neurosurgery, while formally organized into academic disciplines only in the 16th and 20th centuries respectively, boasts origins in prehistoric times. Trepanation, the oldest known surgical procedure from the Stone Age, demonstrates early human intervention, with Incan surgeons by the 1400s achieving remarkable 90% survival rates using advanced scraping techniques and medicinal herbs like coca. Ancient civilizations made crucial observations; the Edwin Smith papyrus from Egypt detailed neurological injuries, and Buddha's physician, Jīvaka Komārabhacca, performed brain surgery in the 5th century BCE.

Further understanding emerged from ancient Greek and Roman thinkers, including Hippocrates, who believed epilepsy had natural causes, and Aristotle, who described parts of the brain. Most notably, the Roman physician Galen conducted extensive dissections across various species. He famously discovered the importance of the recurrent laryngeal nerves through vivisection experiments, dramatically demonstrating their role in vocalization to large audiences in Rome.