Taras is a male Eastern European given name, used particularly by Ukrainians. It is probably derived from Taras, son of the god Poseidon.
The endemic spread of the name in that country is explained by its association with Taras Shevchenko, a national poet and unifying figure for the Ukrainian nation. Naming children by that name came to signify the allegiance to the national cause in a Ukrainian family. Notable people with the name include:
Taras Bidenko (born 1980), a Ukrainian boxer
Taras Borodajkewycz (1902–1984), an Austrian economics historian
Taras Mykolayovych Boychuk (born 1966), a Ukrainian scientist
Taras Borovets (1908–1981), a Ukrainian WWII insurgency leader
Taras Burlak (born 1990), a Russian footballer
Taras Chopik (born 1972), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Chornovil (born 1964), a Ukrainian politician
Taras Chubay (born 1970), a Ukrainian musician and poet
Taras Danko (born 1980), a Ukrainian wrestler
Taras Duray (born 1984), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Dutko, a Ukrainian paralympic footballer
Taras Fedorovych (died c. 1636), a Cossack leader
Taras Ferley (1882–1947), a Canadian publisher and politician
Taras Filenko, a Ukrainian musician and academic
Taras Foremsky (born 1980), a Canadian ice hockey player
Taras Gabora (born 1932), a Canadian violinist
Taras Grescoe (born 1966), a Canadian writer
Taras Hunczak (born 1932), a Ukrainian-American academic
Taras Hyrb (born 1952), a Canadian wrestler
Taras Ilnytskyi (born 1983), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Kabanov (born 1981), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Karabin (born 1989), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Kermauner (1930–2008), a Slovenian author
Taras Khtey (born 1982), a Russian volleyball player
Taras Kiceniuk, Jr. (born 1954), an American hang glider
Taras Kiktyov (1986–2012), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Kompanichenko (born 1969), a Ukrainian musician
Taras Konoshchenko, a Ukrainian opera singer
Taras Kozyra (born 1941), a Canadian politician
Taras Kuzio (born 1958), a British academic
Taras Kripps (born 1985), a Canadian musician
Taras Lazarovych (born 1982), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Lutsenko (born 1974), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Mychalewych (born 1945), a German artist
Taras Mykhalyk (born 1983), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Natyshak (born 1977), a Canadian politician
Taras Netkachev (born 1982), a Russian footballer
Taras Petrivskyi (born 1984), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Petrynenko (born 1953), a Ukrainian singer
Taras Pinchuk (born 1989), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Protsyuk (1968–2003), a Ukrainian journalist
Taras Puchkovskyi (born 1994), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Rajec (born 1988), a Ukrainian-born Slovak ice skater
Taras Rygulskiy (born 1991), a Russian footballer
Taras Senkiv (born 1989), a Ukrainian luger
Taras Shelest (born 1980), a Russian footballer
Taras Shelestyuk (born 1985), a Ukrainian boxer
Taras Shevchenko (1814–1861), a Ukrainian poet
Taras Sokolyk, a Canadian politician and businessman
Taras Stepanenko (born 1989), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Tsarikayev (born 1989), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Valko (born 1985), a Belarusian sprint canoer
Taras Vinni (born 1988), a Ukrainian director and animator
Taras Voznyak (born 1957), a Ukrainian writer and activist
Taras Yastremskyy, a Ukrainian paralympic swimmer
Taras Yavorskyi (born 1989), a Ukrainian footballer
Taras Zaviyskyi (born 1995), a Ukrainian footballer
