John Forman Howes (June 19, 1924 – February 4, 2017)[1] was a Professor of Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia (UBC) for over three decades.

Naval School of Oriental Languages, and served as a translator in the general headquarters of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers Occupation of Japan.

Returning to the United States, he obtained an undergraduate degree at Oberlin College, and then an MA from Columbia University with a thesis entitled "Uchimura Kanzō; a biographical sketch", followed by a 1965 Ph.D for "Japan's enigma, the young Uchimura Kanzō".

[6] Howes was a specialist in modern Japanese intellectual history, concentrating on its Christian and pacifist thinkers, particularly Uchimura Kanzō (1861-1930) and Nitobe Inazō (1862-1933).

In 2003, Howes was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan for his contributions to the Canada-Japan community.