Ireland

Portarlington (Cúil an tSúdaire in Irish, meaning "Tanner's Corner") is a town in County Laois (ex Queen's County), straddling the border with County Offaly (ex King's County) in the midlands of Ireland. Portarlington is a focal point of the Irish railway network, being situated near a junction for services to the west (Galway, Mayo), the south (Cork, Limerick, Tralee) and the east (Dublin, Kildare).

It was founded in 1666, by Sir Henry Bennet, English Home Secretary to Charles II, to whom that King, on his restoration, made a grant of the extensive estates of O'Dempsey, Viscount Clanmaliere, confiscated after the Irish Rebellion of 1641. After some difficulties, the grant passed to Sir Henry Bennet of all the O'Dempsy estates in the King's and Queen's Counties, and on the 14th of April, 1664, he was created Baron Arlington of Arlington in the County of Middlesex. So great was the anxiety of these new settlers to efface all ancient recollections in Ireland, that the Parliament of Orrery and Ormond enacted that the governor and council should be able to give new English names instead of the Irish names of places; and that after a time such new names should be the only ones known or allowed in the country. In accordance with this enactment the borough created in Cooletoodera (Cúil an tSúdaire), received the name of Port-Arlington, or Arlington's Fort. (from Rev. M Comerford "Collections relating to the Dioceses of Kildare and Leighlin" Vol 2 (1883))

See also

• List of towns in the Republic of Ireland

Australia

There is also a Portarlington near Melbourne (Australia).