Original word in Old Norse:
karling
Norman word (from Normandy, France,
where Vikings settled):
carlingue
Current English meaning, according to The Viking Network Online,
http://www.viking.no/e/france/norman_on_words.htm :
cabin (a nautical term)
Current English meaning according to other dictionary sources:
a type of wooden crossbeam, used in building ships
In fact, Philip A. Carlin of Florida has sent us a photo of a beam
of wood used by a shipbuilder. The beam has the bold-letter,
upper-case word "CARLIN" stencilled on it, so the shipbuilders
would know the type of beam it was. Some dictionaries also
spell this word as "Carling."
What does this all mean:
Among other meanings and derivations, the word "Carlin"
has a nautical basis, and a basis in Norman French (Middle French)
and its origins in Old Norse.
Does this confirm that there was a Norwegian Viking longboat
commander named Cairlinn, who conquered the area now known
as Carlingford, in Ireland?
Absolutely not. But it does show a connection between the
word "Carlin" (or "Carling"), ship construction and the old Norse
language.
Although there are some ruins which record business and other
transactions from the Viking eras, the Vikings weren't particularly
literate. (It's hard to be literate when you have letter shapes but
don't actually have a written language as such.) So we're not going to
find any written records to confirm Captain Carlin's command of the
Viking longboat that entered what's now Carlin's fjord in Ireland,
other than the fact that Capt. Carlin's name survives in Carlingford,
and as a special type of nautical crossbeam.
If you happen to meet anyone in a pub in Norway, this email note is
worth a good 15 minutes of conversation. If you meet anyone who's
fluent in Old Norse, ask them to explain the origins of the Carlin
crossbeam. <G>
In the meantime, it's a darned good story. With some evidence, too.
(Whether the evidence actually supports the story or not is an
entirely different matter!)