diff --git a/Rakefile b/Rakefile
index cf920699b..b8bbf061d 100644
--- a/Rakefile
+++ b/Rakefile
@@ -108,7 +108,7 @@ desc "Translate readme"
 task :translate do
   cd "translation" do
     # po4a's lexer might change, so record its version for reference
-    sh "po4a --version > .po4a-version"
+    sh "LANG=C po4a --version > .po4a-version"
 
     sh "po4a po4a.cfg"
   end