1) Derived from the Old Germanic name "hugihard," denoting one strong of heart, or very brave.
2) Derived from Germanic term howart, meaning "high chief," "warden," or "chief warden."
3) From "hof-ward," the keeper of a hall
Howard is the 70th most popular surname in the United States.
100 Most Common U.S. Surnames & Their Meanings
Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census?
Howard Family Genealogy Forum
Search this popular genealogy forum for the Howard surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Howard query.
FamilySearch - HOWARD Genealogy
Find records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Howard surname and its variations.
HOWARD Surname & Family Mailing Lists
RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Howard surname.
Cousin Connect - HOWARD Genealogy Queries
Read or post genealogy queries for the surname Howard, and sign up for free notification when new Howard queries are added.
DistantCousin.com - HOWARD Genealogy & Family History
Free databases and genealogy links for the last name Howard.
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References: Surname Meanings & Origins
Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.
Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005.
Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004.
Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.
Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.
Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.
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