Elphinstone is a Scottish surname. It is locational from the lands of Elphinstone in the parish of Tranent.
Notable people with the surname include:
Alexander Elphinstone, 1st Lord Elphinstone (died 1513), Scottish nobleman
Alexander Elphinstone, 19th Lord Elphinstone (born 1980), Scottish nobleman
Arthur Elphinstone, 6th Lord Balmerino (1688–1746), Scottish nobleman and Jacobite army officer
Augustus Elphinstone (1874–1964), Australian businessman
Cecil Elphinstone (1874–1964), Australian businessman and politician
Charles Elphinstone Fleeming (1774–1840) (born Charles Elphinstone), British admiral
David Elphinstone (1847–1916), Australian architect
Euphemia Elphinstone (fl.1509–1542), mistress of King James V of Scotland
George Elphinstone, 1st Viscount Keith (1746–1823), British admiral
Hester Maria Elphinstone, Viscountess Keith (1764–1857), British literary correspondent and intellectual
Howard Elphinstone (disambiguation), several people including
Sir Howard Craufurd Elphinstone VC (1829–1890), British Army general
James Elphinstone (disambiguation), several people
John Elphinstone (1722–1785), British naval officer
John Elphinstone, 17th Lord Elphinstone (1914–1975), British nobleman and army officer
Sir Lancelot Henry Elphinstone (1879–1965), English lawyer, Attorney-General of Ceylon
Margaret Elphinstone (born 1948), Scottish writer
Mary Elphinstone, Lady Elphinstone (1883–1961), British noblewoman
Mountstuart Elphinstone (1779–1859), Scottish statesman and historian, Lieutenant-Governor of Bombay in British India
Sidney Elphinstone, 16th Lord Elphinstone (1869–1955), Governor of the Bank of Scotland
William Elphinstone (1431–1514), Scottish statesman, Bishop of Aberdeen and founder of the University of Aberdeen
William George Keith Elphinstone (1782–1842), British general
William Elphinstone, 15th Lord Elphinstone (1828–1893), Scottish politician