system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Why is it that when people suffer through amnesia or alzheimers, they still retain their memory of language?
gpt
Actually, in advanced stages of demetia, the centers of the brain responsible for speech and language do degenerate, making communication more and more difficult for patients with dementia. Dementia involves a degeneration of neurons in the cortex, so loss of function depends on what areas degenerate first.

As for amnesia, its simply a matter of where the trauma occurs. Memory is handled by a collection of brain tissue known as the limbic system, which is located more in the central regions of the brain. Language is handled predominately by two separate areas called the Broca's and Wernicke's area, both of which are typically located on the left hemisphere. Amnesia typically involves either the interruption of the formation of memories, or temporary disruption in the neural pathways, in both instances these don't involve the regions involved with speech.