Taillefer was the surname of a Norman warrior and bard, whose exact name and place of birth are unknown. He travelled to England in 1066, and is believed to have struck the first blow at the Battle of Hastings, later dying in the battle. Taillefer is depicted on the Bayeux tapestry.

The surname of the common English surname Taylor is supposed by some to have come from a corruption of Taillefer.

Winston Churchill, in his History of the English-Speaking Peoples writes that Ivo Taillefer rode out alone before the English army at Hastings and tossed his lance and sword into the air, caught them, and charged deeply into the English lines where he was slain.