Which fictional doctor is House, M.D.'s character Gregory House modeled partly on?

Gregory House is modeled partly on Sherlock Holmes in House, M.D.

Both characters are exceptional deductive thinkers who solve difficult mysteries through observation, unconventional reasoning, and attention to details others overlook. House’s surname echoes Holmes’s home, 221B Baker Street, and several character and plot elements also allude to Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories.

The medical setting transforms the detective’s puzzles into diagnostic cases. Instead of identifying a criminal, House identifies a disease; instead of interviewing suspects, he questions patients and colleagues while testing hypotheses. His violin-playing counterpart is reflected in House’s musical interests, and James Wilson occupies a role analogous in part to Dr. John Watson.

House is not a direct retelling of a single Holmes story. The series combines the Holmes influence with original medical plots, hospital politics, and character drama. Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are also famous fictional detectives, but neither is the principal literary model identified for House.