Howl's Moving Castle characters

Appears from the start

The eldest of three sisters in the land of Ingary, where, by the logic of fairy tales, being the eldest means she is doomed to unremarkable failure. Resigned and dutiful, she trims hats in the family shop and speaks to them for company, unaware she has a talent of her own. Early in the story a jealous witch curses her into the body of an old woman, and unable to explain what has happened, she leaves home to seek her fortune. Sharp-tongued and surprisingly bold as a crotchety old lady, she takes shelter in a wizard's roving castle.

First appears in chapter 3

A young and notorious wizard whose castle drifts across the hills, and who is rumored to devour the hearts of young women. In truth he is vain, theatrical, and prone to dramatic sulks, forever chasing romances and dodging responsibility, yet far less monstrous than his fearsome reputation suggests. Slippery and secretive, he keeps his real nature and his troubles well hidden, and Sophie must sort the man from the legend.

First appears in chapter 3

A fire demon who burns in the castle's hearth and powers its magic and its movement. Waspish, teasing, and bound to Howl by a secret contract he cannot speak of directly, he strikes a bargain with Sophie: if she can work out and break the contract, he will lift her curse. He becomes an unlikely companion, dropping hints and complaints from his grate.

First appears in chapter 3

Howl's young apprentice, who keeps the household and much of the practical magic running while his master comes and goes. Good-natured and earnest, he does his best to manage customers and chores, and he has a sweetheart and worries of his own beyond the castle.

First appears in chapter 2

A powerful and vindictive sorceress who rules the desolate Waste and nurses old grievances. It is she who curses Sophie into old age out of spite, and she pursues Howl with a dangerous mixture of jealousy and menace, making her the chief threat looming over the story.

Appears from the start

Sophie's next-youngest sister, spirited and pretty, apprenticed to a baker as the story begins. Warm and forthright, she has her own ideas about the future the sisters are supposed to accept, and she is dear to Sophie.

Appears from the start

The youngest Hatter sister, placed as an apprentice to a witch. Practical about what she truly wants from life, she is close to her sisters and figures in the family's tangled plans and swaps at the outset of the tale.

First appears in chapter 11

A dignified, elderly former teacher of magic who once trained Howl. Grand and perceptive, she takes the measure of Sophie and speaks gravely of Howl's gifts and the dangers around him, offering a glimpse of the wider world of wizards.

First appears in chapter 7

A turnip-headed scarecrow that unnervingly turns up and follows Sophie about, seeming to want something. Its persistent, uncanny presence adds to the sense that strange forces are converging on the castle and its inhabitants.