diff --git a/ChangeLog b/ChangeLog
index 0293a562481..f23fb3e890a 100644
--- a/ChangeLog
+++ b/ChangeLog
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 2011-01-25  Glenn Morris  <rgm@gnu.org>
 
+	* README: Add a note about ranges in copyright years.
+
 	* configure.in: Set CANNOT_DUMP on ia64 hpux (port from emacs-23).
 
 2011-01-25  Peter O'Gorman  <bug-gnu-emacs@mlists.thewrittenword.com>  (tiny change)
diff --git a/README b/README
index 2dc879cd63a..159bc5b3614 100644
--- a/README
+++ b/README
@@ -89,6 +89,14 @@ There are several subdirectories:
 of the standard distribution of the OS.  The platform-specific README
 files and installation instructions should list the required tools.
 
+
+NOTE ON COPYRIGHT YEARS
+
+In copyright notices where the copyright holder is the Free Software
+Foundation, then where a range of years appears, this is an inclusive
+range that applies to every year in the range.  For example: 2005-2008
+represents the years 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.
+
 
 This file is part of GNU Emacs.