diff --git a/data/keyd.1.gz b/data/keyd.1.gz
index f6652fb..fc27dd5 100644
Binary files a/data/keyd.1.gz and b/data/keyd.1.gz differ
diff --git a/docs/keyd.scdoc b/docs/keyd.scdoc
index 21006de..2882520 100644
--- a/docs/keyd.scdoc
+++ b/docs/keyd.scdoc
@@ -279,9 +279,11 @@ E.G
 
 ## Aliases
 
-An *alias* may be assigned to a key and used as a valid left hand value.
-Multiple keys may be bound to a single alias, but _a given key may only be
-assigned to one alias at a time_. For example, the keys 'leftmeta' and
+Each key may optionally be assigned to an *alias*. This alias may be used in place
+of the key as a valid left hand value. Multiple keys may be bound to the same alias,
+but only one alias may be assigned to a key at a given time.
+
+For example, the keys 'leftmeta' and
 'rightmeta' are bound to the alias *meta* by default. Thus the binding 'meta =
 a' is equivalent to the bindings 'leftmeta = a' and 'rightmeta = a'.
 
@@ -293,9 +295,11 @@ the form:
 where _<key>_ must be a valid key name.
 
 Note that <name> may itself be a valid key name, in which case all references
-to the key within the config file will be replaced with the new key. When used
-judiciously, aliases can be used in conjunction with the include directive to
-share bindings between keyboards with different physical layouts.
+to the key within the config file will be replaced with the new key.
+Additionally, if the assigned alias is a valid key name, the corresponding
+keycode will be assigned to the key by default. This makes it possible to
+redefine keys before any bindings are applied and is particularly useful in
+conjunction with the include mechanism to account for variations in hardware.
 
 For example:
 
diff --git a/src/config.c b/src/config.c
index 7314f0a..22a186e 100644
--- a/src/config.c
+++ b/src/config.c
@@ -336,21 +336,32 @@ static void parse_aliases(const char *path, struct config *config, struct ini_se
 	for (i = 0; i < section->nr_entries; i++) {
 		uint8_t code;
 		struct ini_entry *ent = &section->entries[i];
+		const char *name = ent->val;
 
 		if ((code = lookup_keycode(ent->key))) {
-			ssize_t len = strlen(ent->val);
+			ssize_t len = strlen(name);
 
 			if (len > MAX_ALIAS_LEN) {
 				fprintf(stderr,
 					"\tERROR: %s exceeds the maximum alias length (%d)\n",
-					ent->val, MAX_ALIAS_LEN);
+					name, MAX_ALIAS_LEN);
 			} else {
-				strcpy(config->aliases[code], ent->val);
+				uint8_t alias_code;
+
+				if ((alias_code = lookup_keycode(name))) {
+					struct descriptor *d = &config->layers[0].keymap[code];
+
+					d->op = OP_KEYSEQUENCE;
+					d->args[0].code = alias_code;
+					d->args[1].mods = 0;
+				}
+
+				strcpy(config->aliases[code], name);
 			}
 		} else {
 			fprintf(stderr,
 				"\tERROR %s:%zd: Failed to define alias %s, %s is not a valid keycode\n",
-				path, ent->lnum, ent->key, ent->val);
+				path, ent->lnum, ent->key, name);
 		}
 	}
 }