'bindkey "${key[Up]}" up-line-or-search' is probably the incantation you're looking for if you don't want to use oh-my-zsh or whatever. The $key hashmap is generated by zsh's zkbd so that your config can be terminal independent, but you can insert the actual key if you prefer not to use zkbd or only use one terminal type.

There are a bunch of other search types available, zshzle(1) has all the gory details.

Works in bash

https://coderwall.com/p/oqtj8w/the-single-most-useful-thing-...

You need oh-my-zsh