Sc. and north. dial. Also (8 kilie vine), 9 kyle-, keela-, keely-, guilli-, cala-, -vine. [Of uncertain origin.
In South of Scotl. and Northumberland pronounced as two (or three) words keelie vine (or keel i’ vine), (contracted in Scotl. keelie, in Northumb. vine), and commonly explained as from KEEL sb.3 + vine (referring to the pencil ‘vine’ or cedar), the name being only applied to a pencil enclosed in wood. But in other districts the name is pronounced as one word, and applied to the substance black-lead itself: cf. KILLOW, another name of this. See other suggestions in Jamieson. If quot. 1720 belongs here, the correct etymology ought also to explain kilie vert there mentioned.]
A black-lead pencil, or more generally, any colored pencil enclosed in wood (as a red keelie-vine); also, in some places, black-lead, plumbago.
[1720. Dr. Mitchell, Lett. (Jam.). If Gods Providence were not wonderful, I would long since been crying Kilie vine, and Kilie vert, considering I began upon a crown, and a poor trade.]
1808–18. Jamieson, Keelivine, a black-lead pencil.
1826. J. Wilson, Noct. Ambr., Wks. 1855, I. 146. With the verra mere, naked unassisted keelivine (that day fortunately it was a red ane) I caught the character o the apparition.
1884. Scot. Ch. Rev., I. 5. His appliances as yet are a keelyvine and a Balaam-box.
1893. Northumbld. Gloss., Keely-vine, a pencil, originally a pencil made from keel, but applied generally to ‘vines’ or pencils.
1899. Cumbld. Gloss., Calavine, a black-lead pencil.
b. attrib., as keelivine pen, a pencil.
1782. Sir J. Sinclair, Obs. Sc. Dial., 120. Black-lead is called killow, or collow, in Cumberland; and a guillivine-pen, is probably a corruption of a fine killow pencil.
1816. Scott, Antiq., xxxviii. Put up your pocket-book and your keelyvine pen.
1833. Fraser’s Mag., Oct., 398. In a hole he had … jock-to-legs, keelavine pens.
Hence Keelivined a., marked with pencil.
c. 1818. Scott, in Lockhart, xlii. I thought it had been well known that the keelavined egg must be a soft one for the Sherra.
