Etymology

Howard

How·ard
H4O1W4A1R1D2

Today it means: A surname originating as a patronymic. Full definition →

Middle English Howard ← Old Norse Hávarðr ← Old French Huard
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The story

  1. Old French · derived fromHuard
  2. Old Norse · derived fromHávarðr
  3. Middle English · inherited fromHoward
  4. English todayHoward

Medieval personal name from Middle English Howard, Howarde, from Old Norse Hávarðr, from hár (“high”) + varðr (“guard”). In some cases a variant of Heward, from Old French Huard.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.