diff --git a/kivy/_event.pxd b/kivy/_event.pxd
index ab88d2986..9cc169f91 100644
--- a/kivy/_event.pxd
+++ b/kivy/_event.pxd
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ cdef class EventDispatcher(ObjectWithUid):
     cdef dict __properties
     cdef dict __storage
     cdef object __weakref__
+    cdef public set _kwargs_applied_init
     cpdef dict properties(self)
 
 
diff --git a/kivy/_event.pyx b/kivy/_event.pyx
index 66f739cf2..78188ad2f 100644
--- a/kivy/_event.pyx
+++ b/kivy/_event.pyx
@@ -244,12 +244,13 @@ cdef class EventDispatcher(ObjectWithUid):
     def __init__(self, **kwargs):
         cdef basestring func, name, key
         cdef dict properties
-        cdef list prop_args
+        cdef dict prop_args
 
         # Auto bind on own handler if exist
         properties = self.properties()
-        prop_args = [
-            (k, kwargs.pop(k)) for k in list(kwargs.keys()) if k in properties]
+        prop_args = {
+            k: kwargs.pop(k) for k in list(kwargs.keys()) if k in properties}
+        self._kwargs_applied_init = set(prop_args.keys()) if prop_args else set()
         super(EventDispatcher, self).__init__(**kwargs)
 
         __cls__ = self.__class__
@@ -268,7 +269,7 @@ cdef class EventDispatcher(ObjectWithUid):
             self.fbind(func[3:], getattr(self, func))
 
         # Apply the existing arguments to our widget
-        for key, value in prop_args:
+        for key, value in prop_args.items():
             setattr(self, key, value)
 
     def register_event_type(self, basestring event_type):
diff --git a/kivy/lang.py b/kivy/lang.py
index 8ae70702e..b25d7d1c6 100755
--- a/kivy/lang.py
+++ b/kivy/lang.py
@@ -685,6 +685,46 @@ and not by any previous styles that may have set `state_image`.
     is reached. This means that initially, previous rules could be used to set
     the property.
 
+Order of kwargs and KV rule application
+---------------------------------------
+
+Properties can be initialized in KV as well as in python. For example, in KV:
+
+.. code-block:: kv
+
+<MyRule@Widget>:
+    text: 'Hello'
+    ramp: 45.
+    order: self.x + 10
+
+Then `MyRule()` would initialize all three kivy properties to
+the given KV values. Separately in python, if the properties already exist as
+kivy properties one can do for example `MyRule(line='Bye', side=55)`.
+
+However, what will be the final values of the properties when
+`MyRule(text='Bye', order=55)` is executed? The quick rule is that python
+initialization is stronger than KV initialization only for constant rules.
+
+Specifically, the `kwargs` provided to the python initializer are always
+applied first. So in the above example, `text` is set to
+`'Bye'` and `order` is set to `55`. Then, all the KV rules are applied, except
+those constant rules that overwrite a python initializer provided value.
+
+That is, the KV rules that do not creates bindings such as `text: 'Hello'`
+and `ramp: 45.`, if a value for that property has been provided in python, then
+that rule will not be applied.
+
+So in the `MyRule(text='Bye', order=55)` example, `text` will be `'Bye'`,
+`ramp` will be `45.`, and `order`, which creates a binding, will first be set
+to `55`, but then when KV rules are applied will end up being whatever
+`self.x + 10` is.
+
+.. versionchanged:: 1.9.1
+
+    Before, KV rules always overwrote the python values, now, python values
+    are not overwritten by constant rules.
+
+
 Lang Directives
 ---------------
 
@@ -1638,7 +1678,8 @@ def create_handler(iself, element, key, value, rule, idmap, delayed=False):
     idmap = copy(idmap)
     idmap.update(global_idmap)
     idmap['self'] = iself.proxy_ref
-    handler_append = _handlers[iself.uid][key].append
+    bound_list = _handlers[iself.uid][key]
+    handler_append = bound_list.append
 
     # we need a hash for when delayed, so we don't execute duplicate canvas
     # callbacks from the same handler during a sync op
@@ -1698,7 +1739,7 @@ def create_handler(iself, element, key, value, rule, idmap, delayed=False):
                 handler_append(bound)
 
     try:
-        return eval(value, idmap)
+        return eval(value, idmap), bound_list
     except Exception as e:
         tb = sys.exc_info()[2]
         raise BuilderException(rule.ctx, rule.line,
@@ -1912,8 +1953,13 @@ class BuilderBase(object):
         self._apply_rule(widget, rule, rule, template_ctx=proxy_ctx)
         return widget
 
-    def apply(self, widget):
+    def apply(self, widget, ignored_consts=set()):
         '''Search all the rules that match the widget and apply them.
+
+        `ignored_consts` is a set or list type whose elements are property
+        names for which constant KV rules (i.e. those that don't create
+        bindings) of that widget will not be applied. This allows e.g. skipping
+        constant rules that overwrite a value initialized in python.
         '''
         rules = self.match(widget)
         if __debug__:
@@ -1921,12 +1967,13 @@ class BuilderBase(object):
         if not rules:
             return
         for rule in rules:
-            self._apply_rule(widget, rule, rule)
+            self._apply_rule(widget, rule, rule, ignored_consts=ignored_consts)
 
     def _clear_matchcache(self):
         BuilderBase._match_cache = {}
 
-    def _apply_rule(self, widget, rule, rootrule, template_ctx=None):
+    def _apply_rule(self, widget, rule, rootrule, template_ctx=None,
+                    ignored_consts=set()):
         # widget: the current instantiated widget
         # rule: the current rule
         # rootrule: the current root rule (for children of a rule)
@@ -2063,9 +2110,16 @@ class BuilderBase(object):
                     key = rule.name
                     value = rule.co_value
                     if type(value) is CodeType:
-                        value = create_handler(widget_set, widget_set, key,
-                                               value, rule, rctx['ids'])
-                    setattr(widget_set, key, value)
+                        value, bound = create_handler(
+                            widget_set, widget_set, key, value, rule,
+                            rctx['ids'])
+                        # if there's a rule
+                        if bound or key not in ignored_consts:
+                            setattr(widget_set, key, value)
+                    else:
+                        if key not in ignored_consts:
+                            setattr(widget_set, key, value)
+
         except Exception as e:
             if rule is not None:
                 tb = sys.exc_info()[2]
@@ -2261,7 +2315,7 @@ class BuilderBase(object):
                     key = prule.name
                     value = prule.co_value
                     if type(value) is CodeType:
-                        value = create_handler(
+                        value, _ = create_handler(
                             widget, instr.proxy_ref,
                             key, value, prule, idmap, True)
                     setattr(instr, key, value)
diff --git a/kivy/tests/test_lang.py b/kivy/tests/test_lang.py
index 89e0ad5fd..05caf618a 100644
--- a/kivy/tests/test_lang.py
+++ b/kivy/tests/test_lang.py
@@ -226,3 +226,27 @@ class LangTestCase(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertTrue('on_press' in wid.binded_func)
         wid.binded_func['on_press']()
         self.assertEquals(wid.a, 1)
+
+    def test_kv_python_init(self):
+        from kivy.lang import Builder
+        from kivy.uix.widget import Widget
+
+        class MyObject(object):
+            value = 55
+
+        class MyWidget(Widget):
+            cheese = MyObject()
+
+        Builder.load_string('''
+<MyWidget>:
+    x: 55
+    y: self.width + 10
+    height: self.cheese.value
+    width: 44
+''')
+
+        w = MyWidget(x=22, height=12, y=999)
+        self.assertEqual(w.x, 22)
+        self.assertEqual(w.width, 44)
+        self.assertEqual(w.y, 44 + 10)
+        self.assertEqual(w.height, 12)
diff --git a/kivy/uix/widget.py b/kivy/uix/widget.py
index c7bb83a12..2f4ee6fe0 100644
--- a/kivy/uix/widget.py
+++ b/kivy/uix/widget.py
@@ -317,13 +317,7 @@ class Widget(WidgetBase):
 
         # Apply all the styles.
         if not no_builder:
-            #current_root = Builder.idmap.get('root')
-            #Builder.idmap['root'] = self
-            Builder.apply(self)
-            #if current_root is not None:
-            #    Builder.idmap['root'] = current_root
-            #else:
-            #    Builder.idmap.pop('root')
+            Builder.apply(self, ignored_consts=self._kwargs_applied_init)
 
         # Bind all the events.
         if on_args: