 A diminutive is "Howie" and its shortened form is "Ward" (most common in the 19th century).Between 1900 and 1960, Howard ranked in the U.S. Top 200; between 1960 and 1990, it ranked in the U.S. Top 400; between 1990 and 2004, it ranked in the U.S. Top 600.People with the given name Howard or its variants include