diff --git a/NEWS b/NEWS
index 01d04af58..cd1fb1d6a 100644
--- a/NEWS
+++ b/NEWS
@@ -4,6 +4,14 @@ See the end for copying conditions.
 
 Please send Guile bug reports to bug-guile@gnu.org.
 
+Changes since the stable branch:
+
+** Variables have no longer a special behavior for `equal?'. 
+
+Previously, comparing two variables with `equal?' would recursivly
+compare their values.  This is no longer done.  Variables are now only
+`equal?' if they are `eq?'.
+
 Changes since Guile 1.4:
 
 * Changes to the distribution
diff --git a/libguile/ChangeLog b/libguile/ChangeLog
index 0d72dc1b3..6212314b0 100644
--- a/libguile/ChangeLog
+++ b/libguile/ChangeLog
@@ -1,3 +1,19 @@
+2001-07-25  Marius Vollmer  <marius.vollmer@uni-dortmund.de>
+
+	* tags.h (scm_tc7_variable): New.
+	* gc.c (scm_gc_mark): Handle scm_tc7_variable objects.
+	* print.c (scm_iprin1): Likewise.
+
+	* variable.h (scm_tc16_variable): Removed.
+	(SCM_VARIABLEP): Test for new tc7 code.
+	(scm_i_variable_print): New.
+	* variable.c (scm_tc16_variable): Removed.
+	(variable_print): Renamed to scm_i_variable_print and made
+	non-static.
+	(variable_equal_p): Removed.
+	(make_variable): Construct a tc7 object instead of a smob.
+	(scm_init_variable): Do not register smob.
+	
 2001-07-22  Marius Vollmer  <mvo@zagadka.ping.de>
 
 	* tags.h: Include inttypes.h when we have it.