For a short period of time the Oxford Dictionary of Family Names has made its database available for free.
"This huge, new dictionary is the ultimate reference work on family names of the UK, covering English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Cornish, and immigrant surnames. It includes every surname that currently has more than 100 bearers, and those that had more than 20 bearers in the 1881 census."
To see the history of your family's name, click here and search:
https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199677764.001.0001/acref-9780199677764