Didem Yerli

Didem Yerli is a Researcher and PhD candidate at Leiden University, affiliated with the Humanities Institute for Area Studies and the department of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology. She is also an Instructor at Delft University of Technology. Her doctoral research focuses on spatial relations and urban culture in Mediterranean port cities (Constantinople, Salonica, Smyrna) between 1830-1923, emphasizing social transitions, urban studies, and water heritage. Since January 2022, she has been a post-doctoral researcher in the Leiden-Delft-Erasmus PortCityFutures initiative, examining port cities' socio-spatial dynamics. Yerli holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Galatasaray University and a master’s from Sabancı University. Her work bridges historical urban studies, spatial sociology, and cultural anthropology, with a focus on Mediterranean urban heritage and port-city interactions.