Ras (surname)
Ras is a surname with a variety of origins. In Dutch ras means "nimble, swift", but it is a patronymic surname: the archaic given name Ras, Raas, or Raes was short for Erasmus or was a derivative the Middle Dutch male name Razo. In Polish or Serbian the name is likely also patronymic, while in French the meaning "bare" or "shorn" may indicate a topographic name for someone who lived on bare or razed land. People with this surname include:
- Barbara Ras, American poet, translator and publisher
- Eva Ras, Serbian actress, writer, and painter
- Hans Ras, Dutch professor of Javanese language and literature
- Koos Ras, South African singer and comedian
- Leopold Willem Ras, Dutch merchant-trader and diplomat, opperhoofd in Dejima
- Marthinus Nikolaas Ras, South African farmer, soldier, and gun-maker
- Maxime Ras, French football striker
- Radomir Stević Ras, Serbian painter, illustrator and designer
- , Dutch ice hockey player