newel

noun

1. newel post.
2. a central pillar or upright from which the steps of a winding stair radiate.
3. (on an escalator) the horizontal section of railing at the upper or lower end.

noun

1. the central pillar of a winding staircase, esp one that is made of stone
2. See newel post

n.mid-14c., “pillar from which steps of a winding staircase radiate,” from Old French noel, novel “knob, newel, kernel, stone” (Modern French noyau), from Vulgar Latin *nodellus “little knot,” diminutive of Latin nodulus, diminutive of nodus “knot” (see net (n.)). Klein’s sources suggest the French word may be from Gallo-Romance *nucale, from Latin nux “nut.” The meaning “post at the top or bottom of a staircase” is from 1833.