Birkhead is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
- Edith Birkhead, lecturer in English Literature at the University of Bristol and a Noble Fellow at the University of Liverpool
- George Birkhead (died 1614), English Roman Catholic priest, archpriest in England from 1608
- Harry Birkhead (died 2013), South African philatelist
- Henry Birkhead (1617–1696), English academic, lawyer and Latin poet
- Leon Milton Birkhead (1885–1954), American Unitarian minister
- Martin Birkhead (died 1590), English politician
- Tim Birkhead, Professor of Zoology at the University of Sheffield and author