Tamayo is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez (born 1942), Cuban cosmonaut Francisco Tamayo (1902–1985), Venezuelan botanist Franz Tamayo (1878–1956), Bolivian intellectual Gustavo Tamayo, Colombian ophthalmologist Jeff Tamayo, pioneer of Taekwondo and military officer in the Philippines Jonathan Tamayo (born 1984), American poker player José Luis Tamayo (1858–1947), Ecuadorian president Juan José Tamayo (born 1946), Spanish theologian Manuel Tamayo y Baus (1829–1898), Spanish dramatist María Fernanda Tamayo, Ecuadorian police official Misael Tamayo Hernández (1952–2006), Mexican journalist
Rufino Tamayo (1899–1991), Mexican painter