Nelling

Nelling is a term with several specialized senses in English, appearing in historical craft writings and dialect vocabularies. It can refer to the act of forming a recess, notch, or groove in wood to accept another component, as well as to the making of a mesh or net in traditional netting contexts. In some sources, the noun nel denotes the notch itself, and nelling describes the shaping or cutting of that feature.

In carpentry and joinery, nelling describes the process of creating a notch or groove to accommodate joints such as tenons, housings, or bridle connections. The practice aids alignment and strength by producing complementary surfaces that interlock when assembled. The term appears mainly in older manuals and regional vocabularies.

In the craft of netting and textiles, nelling has been used to describe the construction of a network or mesh, especially in dialect or traditional contexts. This sense aligns with netting and knotting practices used in fishing, horticultural supports, and decorative textiles. Modern technical language usually substitutes netting or knotting, but some regional glossaries retain the term.

Beyond crafts, nelling has appeared as an occupational surname and, occasionally, in place-names, reflecting ancestral associations with a trade or location. The usage of nelling today is largely historical or regional, with contemporary references limited to historical discussions, dialect studies, and niche craft manuals.