Man, 71, Holds Record For World's Longest Nose — And It's Only Getting Bigger

Oct 08, 2021

The Guinness World Records has been cataloging human achievements and very unique occurrences in the world since the 1950s. From the fastest man alive to the woman with the longest fingernails, you can believe that the Guinness Book of Records has an entry for it.

A few days ago, the organization shared a post on social media detailing the man with the longest nose in the world. Hailing from Turkey, Mehmet Özyürek, 71, is the proud owner of the longest nose of a living person, measuring 3.5 inches (8.8cm) from bridge to tip. 

But Özyürek's record isn't a new one — he's actually been the record holder since 2010. In fact, the Guinness World Records has shared the record multiple times to social media — a few days ago on Instagram and back in 2019 via Twitter. In their Twitter post, dated March 18, 2019, they wrote:

"#OnThsDay in 2010 Mehmet Özyürek from Turkey was officially confirmed as our record holder for the longest nose on a living person. Mehmet's magnificent nose measures 8.8 cm (3.46 in) from the bridge to the tip 👃"

Özyürek's nose was first measured on an Italian TV show in 2010, with Guinness World Records adding him to their famous book after that. That means that in the last 11 years, no other human has been able to beat Özyürek's majestic sniffer. What's more, because human noses technically get bigger as we age, it's likely that his nose will get even longer. Let's take a closer look at this unique world record.

Özyürek first became the world record holder for the longest nose of a living person while appearing on the Italian show "Lo Show Dei Record," which was filmed in Rome on March 18, 2010. The measurement for the longest nose is done by starting at the nose bridge, between the eyes, and measuring down the nose's curvature to reach the tip. It is not to be confused with how far the nose juts out from the face.

Following Özyürek's appearance on Italian TV, the Guinness World Records declared him the record holder and since then his nose has been unbeaten by anyone. The Guinness World Records' Instagram post about Özyürek's champion nose four days ago has had people talking about his record once again and the post has since accrued over 101,000 likes. 

But while his proboscis is impressive, it's actually not the longest nose of anyone who's ever lived. The longest recorded nose belongs to Thomas Wedders who hailed from Yorkshire, England. Born around 1730, his incredible nose was believed to measure 7.5 inches (19cm)! Wedders' nose garnered as much interest back then as Özyürek's has today, leading Wedders to be a member of various circus sideshows in the region. Still famed for his nose, despite it being long gone, lifesize waxworks of Wedders' nose are displayed at Ripley's Believe It or Not museums around the world today.

So while Özyürek's nose is currently the reigning champion of any living person, and Wedders' nose is known as the longest that has ever been recorded, there's no telling who might one day oust them from their records.

Are you impressed with the size of Mehmet Özyürek's nose? What are some other Guinness World Records you find interesting? Pass this on to those you know so they can learn about it too!