diff --git a/Documentation/RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt b/Documentation/RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fc3ea18
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Documentation/RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+Git v1.8.3.1 Release Notes
+========================
+
+Fixes since v1.8.3
+------------------
+
+ * When $HOME is misconfigured to point at an unreadable directory, we
+   used to complain and die. The check has been loosened.
+
+ * Handling of negative exclude pattern for directories "!dir" was
+   broken in the update to v1.8.3.
+
+Also contains a handful of trivial code clean-ups, documentation
+updates, updates to the test suite, etc.
diff --git a/Documentation/git.txt b/Documentation/git.txt
index 9e302b0..443d88f 100644
--- a/Documentation/git.txt
+++ b/Documentation/git.txt
@@ -43,6 +43,12 @@
 branch of the `git.git` repository.
 Documentation for older releases are available here:
 
+* link:v1.8.3.1/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.3.1]
+
+* release notes for
+  link:RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt[1.8.3.1],
+  link:RelNotes/1.8.3.txt[1.8.3].
+
 * link:v1.8.2.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.2.3]
 
 * release notes for
diff --git a/GIT-VERSION-GEN b/GIT-VERSION-GEN
index 1c0ca63..eeecb5d 100755
--- a/GIT-VERSION-GEN
+++ b/GIT-VERSION-GEN
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 #!/bin/sh
 
 GVF=GIT-VERSION-FILE
-DEF_VER=v1.8.3
+DEF_VER=v1.8.3.1
 
 LF='
 '
diff --git a/RelNotes b/RelNotes
index 80b7e38..cecd093 120000
--- a/RelNotes
+++ b/RelNotes
@@ -1 +1 @@
-Documentation/RelNotes/1.8.3.txt
\ No newline at end of file
+Documentation/RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt
\ No newline at end of file