The most comprehensive dictionary of British and Irish surnames is now free to download.
The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland was published in 2016 and is the result of a four-year project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).
The book offers entries for more than 45,000 English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Cornish, and immigrant surnames, including every surname in the UK that has more than 100 bearers in the 21st century and more than 20 in the 1881 census records.
Useful information about each surname includes variant spellings of the name, an explanation of its origins (including the etymology), lists of early bearers, geographical distribution, and genealogical and bibliographical notes.
However, the dictionary runs to over 3000 pages and costs £440. Even the concise edition costs £115.
Fortunately, family historian Peter Calver has just reported in his newsletter Lost Cousins that the Kindle edition of the dictionary has been reduced to £0 on UK Amazon.
You can access the dictionary on a Kindle if you have one, or download the Kindle app onto your existing device and then download the book.
