Şerif Yenen
Şerif Yenen is one of Turkey's most distinguished cultural historians, educators, and tour specialists, whose four decades of field experience have established him as a leading authority on Anatolian civilization and Turkish cultural heritage.
His Story
Born in 1963, Yenen is a tour guide, travel writer, filmmaker, international keynote speaker, and lecturer whose work spans more than four decades of firsthand engagement with Turkey's archaeological, historical, and living traditions.
He authored Turkish Odyssey — the first comprehensive guidebook to Turkey ever written by a Turk — a work subsequently adopted as a textbook or recommended reading at universities internationally. His latest work, published in 2025, is a comprehensive, revised, and expanded three-volume edition of that original guidebook.
Yenen has delivered lectures on Turkish history and culture at institutions including the Smithsonian Institution and Boston University, and has served as guide to figures ranging from Pope Benedict XVI to Oprah Winfrey. He has taught Anatolian Civilizations and Cultural Heritage of Turkey at Bilgi and Boğaziçi Universities as a part-time instructor and served for over a decade as president of both the Istanbul Tourist Guides' Guild and the Federation of Turkish Tourist Guide Associations. To travel with Serif Yenen is to move through Turkey in the company of someone for whom its history is neither background nor decoration, but a living subject of ongoing inquiry and deep personal devotion.
Tours Curated by Şerif Yenen
Anatolian Civilizations: From the First Settlements to Imperial Capitals
Trace the rise of Anatolian civilizations from the world’s earliest settlements to the grandeur of imperial capitals. This journey weaves through millennia of history, exploring ancient cities, layered cultures, and the empires that shaped the region. Led by expert scholars, you’ll gain deeper insight into the people, ideas, and innovations that continue to influence the modern world.