insofar as a shiel is a simple enclosure like a shell and shieling may describe action, the 1820 novel "the monastery", by sir walter scott notes that in scotland, a "shieling-hill" was a place for separating wheat corn from chaff by hand. here shieling is a verb describing the act of removing wheat grain shells, combined with the noun "hill". further use of shiel in this order is found in sir walter scott's "the black dwarf (novel)", in which in 1816 was written "...["w"]"e took their swords and pistols as easily as ye wad shiel peacods"."