kantel

Kantel is a Dutch term with several related uses. As a noun, kantel designates a tilt or tipping action, the movement by which an object pivots about an axis or hinge, or a device that enables tilting. In engineering or construction contexts, one might encounter phrases referring to a kantelmechanisme or the kantel of a component. As a verb, kantelen means to tilt, incline, or overturn; for example, de wagen kantelt in een bocht.

In Dutch political journalism, kantel is used metaphorically to describe a government turnover or cabinet reshuffle. A kantelperiode refers to a stretch during which ministers are replaced or a cabinet is reconfigured, often prompted by a crisis, reevaluation, or election. The term appears in discussions of political change and signals a substantive shift in personnel rather than a gradual evolution.

Kantel also appears as a surname in Dutch- and Flemish-speaking communities. Like many surnames, it occurs in historical and contemporary records but does not correspond to a single widely known figure in English-language reference works.

In English, kantel is typically translated as tilt or tilting, with kantelen rendered as to tilt or to overturn. The word conveys the sense of a turning or shifting state, whether in a mechanical context or in politics.