Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names (1945) notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for it except that it is the name of several noble families". The surname has a number of possible origins; in the case of the noble house, the likely source is the Norse given name Hávarðr, composed of the elements há ("high") and varðr ("guardian").
Diminutives include Howie and Ward. Howard reached peak popularity in the United States in the 1920s, when it ranked as the 26th most popular boys' name. As of 2018, it had fallen to 968th place.
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People with the given name
Howard Allen (1949–2020), American serial killer
Howard Duane Allman (1946–1971), American guitar virtuoso
Howard Anderson (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Andrew (1934–2021), American poker player
Howard Ashman (1950–1991), American playwright, lyricist and stage director
Howard Baker (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Berman (born 1941), American attorney and politician
Howard Bragman (1956–2023), American crisis manager and publicist
Howard W. Brill (born 1943), chief justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court
Howard Graham Buffett (born 1954), American businessman, politician, philanthropist, photographer, farmer, and conservationist
Howard Burnett (athlete) (born 1961), Jamaican track and field athlete
Howard J. Burnett (1929–2019), American president of Washington & Jefferson College
Howard Carpendale (born 1946), German singer
Howard Carter (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard S. Chasanow (1937–2017), justice of the Maryland Court of Appeals
Howard Chaykin (born 1950), American comic book artist and writer
Howard Y T Cheng (born 1981), champion apprentice jockey in Hong Kong
Howard Cosell (1918–1995), sports broadcaster
Howard "Ward" Cunningham (born 1949), American founder of WikiWikiWeb
Howard B. Cushing (1838–1871), American soldier during the Civil War
Howard David (fl. 1990s–2010s), American sportscaster
Howard Davies (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Davis (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Dean (born 1948), American politician
Howard Donald (born 1968), English singer
Howard Devoto (born Howard Trafford, 1952), English singer-songwriter
Howard Duff (1913–1990), American actor
Howard Eastman (born 1970), Guyanese-British boxer
Howard Ehmke (1894–1959), American baseball pitcher
Howard Eisenberg (born 1926), American author and journalist
Howard Eisley (born 1972), American basketball player and coach
Howard Engel (1931–2019), Canadian mystery writer
Howard Eskin (born 1951), American sports radio personality
Howard Evans (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Fast (1914–2003) American novelist and television writer
Howard Fineman (1948–2024), American journalist and television commentator
Howard Florey (1898–1968), Australian pharmacologist
Howard Gardner (born 1943), American developmental psychologist
Howard Goodall (born 1958), British musician, musicologist and TV presenter
Howard Grant (boxer) (born 1966), Jamaican-Canadian boxer
Howard Hanson (1896–1981), American composer, conductor, educator, and music theorist
Howard Hawks (1896–1977), American producer
Howard Head (1914-1991), American businessman
Howard Hesseman (1940–2022), American actor
Howard Hotson (fl. 2000–2020s), British historian
Howard A. Howe (1901–1976), American virologist
Howard Hughes (1905–1976), American aviation pioneer and film mogul
Howard Jacobson (born 1942), British novelist and journalist
Howard Johnson (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Jones (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Judd (1935–2007), American physician and medical researcher
Howard Kazanjian (born 1942), Armenian-American film producer
Howard Keel (1919–2004), singer and actor born Harry Keel
Howard Kendall (1946–2015), English football player and manager
Howard Kirshbaum (born 1938), associate justice of the Colorado Supreme Court
Howard Andrew Knox (1885–1949), American physician
Howard Kurtz (born 1953), American journalist and author
Howard Lassoff (1955–2013), American-Israeli basketball player
Howard Lederer (born 1964), professional poker player
Howard Lesnick (1931–2020), American, Jefferson B. Fordham Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School
Howard Long (1905–1939), American convicted murderer
H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937), American writer (full name Howard Phillips Lovecraft)
Howard Lutnick (born 1961), United States Secretary of Commerce
Howard Hamilton Mackey (1901–1987), American architect, educator
Howard McNear (1905–1969), American radio and television actor
Howard Marks (1945–2016), teacher, drug smuggler and author
Howard Matthews (1885–1963), English footballer
Howard W. Mattson (1927–1998), American chemist and journalist
Howard Metzenbaum (1917–2008) American politician and businessman
Howard Morris (1919–2005), American actor, comedian, and director
Howard T. Odum (1924–2002), American ecologist
Howard Payne (athlete) (1931–1992), English hammer thrower
Howard Pyle (1853–1911), American illustrator, painter, and author
Howard Schatz, American fine art photographer
Howard Roberts (1929–1992) American guitarist, educator, and session musician
Howard Schultz (born 1953), American businessman and CEO of Starbucks
Howard Shane, American Autism researcher
Howard Shore (born 1946), Canadian composer
Howard Sims (1917–2003) African-American tap dancer
Howard da Silva (1909–1986), American actor, director and musical performer
Howard Smalley (born 1942), New Zealand cricketer
Howard Smith (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Smothers (born 1973), American football player
Howard Spira, American gambler who was paid by George Steinbrenner to find dirt on baseball player Dave Winfield
Howard Stableford (born 1959), British television and radio presenter
Howard Staunton (1810–1874), British chess player and Shakespearean scholar
Howard Stern (born 1954), American talk-radio host
Howard Stelzer (born 1974) American electro-acoustic music composer
Howard K. Stern (born 1968), attorney for Anna Nicole Smith
Howard Stidham (born 1954), American football player
Howard Stupp (born 1955), Canadian Olympic wrestler
Howard Tayler (born 1968), American cartoonist
Howard Turner (1897–1976), American football player
Howard Unruh (1921–2009), American spree killer
Howard Van Smith (1909–1987), American journalist
Howard Wales (1943–2020), American musician
Howard Walker (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Walter (1883–1918), American Congregationalist minister and hymnist
Howard Washington (born 1998), American-Canadian basketball player
Howard Watt (1911–2005), South African rugby union player
Howard Watts III (born 1987), American politician
Howard Webb (born 1971), English professional football referee
Howard Weyers (1934–2018), American football player and assistant coach
Howard Wilkinson (born 1943), English football manager
Howard Williams (disambiguation), name of several people
Howard Wilson (American football) (born 1995), American football player
Howard Wilson (physicist), British physicist
Howard Zinn (1922–2010), American historian, academic, author, playwright, and social activist
People known as Howie
Howie Auer (1908–1985), American football player
Howie B (born 1963), Scottish musician and producer Howard Bernstein
Howie Beck (born 1970), Musical artist
Howie Bedell (born 1935), American baseball player
Howie Braun (1912–1996), American basketball player and coach
Howie Brode (born 1963), American racing driver
Howie Brown (1922–1975), American football player
Howie Camnitz (1881–1960), American baseball player
Howie Camp (1893–1960), American baseball player
Howie Carl (1938–2005), American basketball player
Howie Carr (born 1952), American journalist
Howie Carter (1904–1991), American baseball player
Howie Casey (born 1937), English R&B and rock saxophonist
Howie Charbonneau (born 1955), American soccer player
Howie Chizek (1947–2012), American sports announcer
Howie Choset (born 1968), American roboticist
Howie Clark (born 1974), American baseball player
Fictional characters
Howard Beale, from the film Network
Howard Bellamy (Doctors), in the British soap opera Doctors
Howard Cunningham (Happy Days), in the TV series Happy Days
Howard Colvin, from The Wire
Howard Hamlin, from Better Call Saul
Howard Huge, a comic strip dog
Howard McBride, in the animated series The Loud House
Howard Moon, in the TV series The Mighty Boosh
Howard Roark, protagonist of Ayn Rand's novel The Fountainhead
Howard Stark, father of Tony Stark/Iron Man
Howard Wolowitz, on the TV series The Big Bang Theory
Howard the Duck, a comic book character