The subject is the title of a Telegraph article on people taking off work until January 8. Where does the British slang to skive come from? Is it rhyming slang or is it analogous to split when used to mean to depart?

This doesn't answer your question, neveu, but it does give a clue ..... that it is from Old Norse.

On the other hand, it could be rhyming slang. I'm about to conclude that almost anything could be rhyming slang.

This site gives another possible explanation: that it comes from the French esquiver, to slink away. They also suggest that it was military slang from the First World War, which is certainly possible as many French words were used as slang by the British Tommies at the time.