Forms: 4 cauce, kauce, cause, cauci, 4–6 causei, 4–7 cawse, 5 caulce, calse, 5–7 causy, 5–8 cawsey, 6 caucey, caucie, causie, cawsey, causay, calsey, causeie, 6–7 cawsy, calcey, calceis, Sc. calsay, 7 caussey, cawsie, Sc. casey, 6– causey. Also 5 cauchie, cawchie; chaucie. [ME. cancé, a. ONF. (Norman) caucie, earlier cauciée (Picard cauchie from cauchiée, Parisian chauciée occas. chaucie, now chaussée = Pr. caussada, Sp. calzada:—late L. calceāta, calciāta, in Du Cange (who has also via calciata, littus calciatum, cheminus calciatus; prob. f. a late L. calciāre ‘to stamp with the heels, to tread,’ recorded by Du Cange. The meaning would then be a mound or dam made firm by stamping or treading down.
This is strengthened by the fact that calciāre in med.L. interchanges with calcāre to ‘tread, stamp,’ and that calcāta, calcātum are actually found instead of calciāta, calciātum, also calcāgium for the droit de chaussée or road-toll. The Romanic forms are (necessarily) identical with those derived from L. calceāre to shoe (It. calzare, Sp. calzar, Cat. calsar, Pr. caussar, OF. cauchier, caucier, chaucier, F. chausser), whence some have suggested the meaning ‘shod way,’ whatever this might be. Diez and others have conjectured a vb. of type *calceāre, or calciāre, from calx, calcem ‘lime,’ and taken calceāta as something built or formed with lime; but there is no trace of such a sense in any language. Other med.L. forms were calcea mound, high way, paved way, also calceia, calcetum, calceta, all app. formed on the French. The OF. forms in -ie (from end of 12th c.), represent earlier ones in -iée; the Anglo-F. would be caucée, caucé.]
† 1. A mound, embankment or dam, to retain the water of a river or pond. Obs.
[c. 1170. Charter Hen. II., in Dugdale, Monast. (1683), I. 914. Terra quam vivaria sua et calciæ suæ occupabunt.]
c. 1330. Arth. & Merl., 7756. Opon a cauci bi a broke.
1509–10. Act 1 Hen. VIII., ix. Preamb., A Cawsey extendyng a Myle … ynclosyth the Water of themys from the Kinges hygh Waye.
1601. Holland, Pliny, VI. xxvii. I. 139. Spasines … opposed mightie dams and causies [oppositis molibus] against those riuers.
1611. Cotgr., Chaussée, the causey, banke, or damme of a pond or of a riuer.
1745. P. Thomas, Jrnl. Anson’s Voy., 187. They [these Causeys] are of no little Use, both to keep in the Waters of these Canals, and for those to walk on who drag the Boats along.
1774. Goldsm., Nat. Hist. (1862), I. vi. 480. This dike, or causey, is sometimes ten, and sometimes twelve feet thick, at the foundation.
2. A raised way formed on a mound, across a hollow, esp. low wet ground, a bog, marsh, lake, arm of the sea, etc.; a raised footway by the side of a carriage road liable to be submerged in wet weather. More fully called causeyway, now CAUSEWAY; causey being now less used.
c. 1330. R. Brunne, Chron. Wace (Rolls), 3088. Þorow myres, hylles & vales He made brugges and causes. Ibid., Chron. Langt. (1810), 183. Was þer non entre … Bot a streite kauce, at þe end a drauht brigge.
c. 1450. Merlin, 380. At the foote of the castell was a maras … and thereto was noon entre saf a litill cawchie that was narrowe and straite. Ibid., 604. Aboue this marasse was a chaucie … of the brede of a spere lengthe made of chalke and sand.
1577. Holinshed, Chron., III. 830. He … made a continuall causie of timber ouer the marshes from Walthamstow to Locke bridge.
1598. Grenewey, Tacitus’ Ann., I. xiii. (1622), 25. Hauing … cast bridges and causeyes [pontesque et aggeres] ouer the moist and deceitfull passages of the bogs.
1604. E. G[rimstone], D’Acosta’s Hist. Indies, V. xiii. 362. There was in the midst of the Lake where the Cittie of Mexico is built, foure large cawseies in crosse.
1611. Bible, Prov. xv. 19. The way of the slouthful man is as an hedge of thornes: but way of the righteous is made plaine. Marg. Hebr. is raised vp as a causey.
1622. Callis, Stat. Sewers (1647), 66. A Calcey or Calsway is a passage made by art of Earth, Gravel, Stones and such like … through surrounded grounds.
1643. in Rushw., Hist. Coll., III. II. 509. A Stone-Causey thorow a Bogg.
1673. Ray, Journ. Low C., Pisa 268. Castel d’Ovo, built on a rock in the Sea, having an artificial Caussey or Mole leading to it from the shore.
c. 1710. Hearne, Gloss. Langtoft’s Chron., Kauce, causey … commonly taken with us for a High way, or Bank, raised in Marshy Ground for Foot passage, tho’ even sometimes the Ways for Horse Passage are also known by this name, such as that beyond Friar Bacon’s Study in Oxford [Abingdon Road].
1853. Bryant, Lett., 16 June. A noble causey, with parapets and a pavement of hewn stone, has been lately made over the low grounds … as the new Appian way.
1860. J. P. Kennedy, Horse Shoe R., xii. 139. A swamp … rendered passable by a causey of timber.
1877. E. Peacock, N.-W. Linc. Gloss.
† b. The solid mounding at the ends of a bridge.
1523. Ld. Berners, Froiss., I. ccccxiii. 721. He and his men were by the bridge on the causey, raynging on bothe sydes.
† c. Sometimes applied to an arched viaduct.
1615. G. Sandys, Trav., II. 127. Athwart the plaine there extendeth a caussey supported with arches.
† d. Sometimes app. a row of stepping stones.
1598. Yong, Diana, III. 71. Vpon a fine causey of stones most artificiallie … laide in order, they passed all ouer into the iland [vnas piedras … puestas in orden].
† e. The Giant’s Causey: see CAUSEWAY. Obs.
1811. Pinkerton, Petral., II. 301. That kind of earthy limestone, which appears under the Giant’s causey in Ireland.
† 3. Hence, A highway (as originally raised and paved). Applied esp. to the Roman roads, and still given as a proper name to some considered Roman, as the Devil’s Causey (or Causeway) in Northumberland. Otherwise Obs.
1495. Will of Bp. of Llandaff (Somerset Ho.). Vie Regvulgariter Cawsey.
1540. Act 32 Hen. VIII., xvii. The causey or hygh way leading from Algate to White chapel church.
1577. Eden & Willes, Hist. Trav., 254. They determined also to make three causeys or hygh wayes by land.
1606. Holland, Sueton., 19. To make a cawsie or high-way, form the Adriatick Sea, by the ridge or side of the Apennine hill.
1670. Milton, P. L., X. 416. Satan went down The causey to Hell-gate.
1704. Hearne, Duct. Hist. (1714), I. 372. The Cawsey, called Via Appia.
1708. J. Chamberlayne, St. Gt. Brit., II. i. ii. (1743), 305. Evident footsteps of a Roman Causey, or Military Way.
1713. Steele, Englishman, No. 31. 202. The French are making a new Causey from Lisle to Dunkirk.
b. fig.
1574. Whitgift, Def. Aunsw., III. Wks. 1851, I. 322. To walk in the broad and beaten way, as it were the common causey of the commandment, rather than an outpath of the example.
4. esp. A paved way; the paved part of a way. Still dial.
1430. E. E. Wills (1882), 85. To the causy atte Wyke, iiij d.
1527. Test. Ebor. (Surtees), V. 228. To the amendyng of Friston hie waye and caucey.
1530. Palsgr., 203/2. Causey in a hye way, chavsee.
1572. Huloet, A caucie or a waye paued, agger solidus, chemin paue de pieres, chaucee.
1577. Hellowes, Gueuara’s Chron., 29. He made a paued Calsey, being a broad high waye that lasted two leagues and halfe.
1581. Savile, Tacitus’ Hist., III. xxi. (1591), 126. He commanded the third Legion to make stand vpon the cawsey of the Posthumian way [in ipso aggere viæ Postumianæ].
1659. Louth Ch. Acc., iv. 286 (Peacock, N.-W. Linc. Gloss.). For paving the causey in the church-yard.
1768. Tucker, Lt. Nat. (1852), I. 634. To turn her upon the flowery turf of reward, rather than the rocky-pointed causey of punishment.
1877. Holderness Gloss. (E. D. S.), Cawsey … a raised and paved side-walk, or one across a fold-yard, but often any foot path.
1877. E. Peacock, N.-W. Linc. Gloss. (E. D. S.), Causey, a footpath, especially when made of flag-stones or paved with cobbles.
5. esp. A street, or part of a street, paved with cobbles or small boulders (or blocks of trap or granite), as distinguished from flag-stones; a street pavement. Chiefly Sc.
The whole street may be a causey; or the road-way may be causey, while the side walks are flagged, or the side walks causey and the center macadamized.
Crown of the causey: the center or highest part of the pavement, as most public, conspicuous or honorable.
1535. Stewart, Cron. Scot., III. 561. Throw all the toun, Quhair on the stairis and all the calsay wnder, Rycht mony stude that tyme on him to wunder.
c. 1538. Lyndesay, Agst. Syde Tailis, 30. Quhare euer thay go it may be sene How kirk and calsay thay soup clene.
1577. Hanmer, Anc. Eccl. Hist. (1619), 423. She [Eudocia] … made the streete commonly called the great cawsy.
1584. J. Carmichael, Lett., in Misc. Wodr. Soc. (1844), 435. A great bragging between them in the calsay of Edinburgh.
1587. in Northern N. & Q., I. 83. Fraynch Calsay Makers to repair Calsayes in the Kowgaitt.
1611. Bible, 1 Chron. xxvi. 16. By the causey of the going vp [1568 The paved streate that goeth vpwarde].
1635. Rutherford, Lett. (1862), I. 149. Truth will yet keep the crown of the causey in Scotland.
1650. Row, Hist. Kirk, 511. The croun, scepter, and sword of honour … which … the Noblemen themselves carried up the casey of Edinburgh.
a. 1774. Fergusson, Election, Poems (1845), 42. Glower round the cawsey, up and down.
1820. Scott, Abbot, II. ii. 36. Two men were already stretched on the causeway.
1823. Galt, Entail, III. x. 95. It could ne’er be expected that I would let them be married on the crown-o’-the-causey.
1840. Browning, Sordello, V. Wks. II. 398. This companion slips On the smooth causey.
1848. S. Bamford, Early Days, ix. (1859), 98. A neatly paved footpath and a causey for carts.
6. A piece of pavement (of cobbles, as distinguished from flags), a paved area. Chiefly Sc.
1481–90. Howard Househ. Bks. (1841), 505. To Robt. Burton for the makyng of the causey at the stabill dore.
1633. T. James, Voy., 60. We made a Hearth or Causie in the middle of the house.
1663. Gerbier, Counsel, 98. Rogues have taken up the causey or pavement before a doore.
1880. Antrim & Down Gloss. (E. D. S.), Cawsey, cassy, the paved or hard-beaten place in front of or round about a farmhouse.
7. attrib. and Comb., as causey-cleaner, -crown (see 5), -lamp, -maker, -making, -saint, -side; † calsay-paiker (Sc.), a street-walker.
1786. Burns, Brigs of Ayr, 157. To whom our moderns are but *causey-cleaners.
1837. R. Nicoll, Poems (1843), 105. He keeps the *causey-crown.
1578. Glasgow Town Council Proc., in Hist. Glasgow (1881), 133. The expense of the *calsay-making.
a. 1555. Lyndesay, Trag., 378. Off *calsay-paikaris, nor of publycanis.
1862. in Hislop’s Prov. Scot., 83. He’s a *causey saint and a house deil.
1652. Culpepper, Eng. Physic., 41. By a *Causey side in the middle of a field by Paddington.
