diff --git a/Makefile.pre.in b/Makefile.pre.in
index 63f03c4508d..361d8b28961 100644
--- a/Makefile.pre.in
+++ b/Makefile.pre.in
@@ -107,6 +107,8 @@ PYTHONFRAMEWORK=	@PYTHONFRAMEWORK@
 PYTHONFRAMEWORKDIR=	@PYTHONFRAMEWORKDIR@
 PYTHONFRAMEWORKPREFIX=	@PYTHONFRAMEWORKPREFIX@
 PYTHONFRAMEWORKINSTALLDIR= @PYTHONFRAMEWORKINSTALLDIR@
+# Options to enable prebinding (for fast startup)
+OTHER_LIBTOOL_OPT = -prebind -seg1addr 0x10000000
 
 # Environment to run shared python without installed libraries
 RUNSHARED=       @RUNSHARED@
diff --git a/configure b/configure
index 39c9892fa4c..df432d81f0b 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 #! /bin/sh
-# From configure.in Revision: 1.384 .
+# From configure.in Revision: 1.385 .
 # Guess values for system-dependent variables and create Makefiles.
 # Generated by GNU Autoconf 2.53 for python 2.3.
 #
@@ -9443,7 +9443,11 @@ then
 		# -u _PyMac_Error is needed to pull in the mac toolbox glue, which is
 		# not used by the core itself but which needs to be in the core so
 		# that dynamically loaded extension modules have access to it.
-		LINKFORSHARED="$extra_undefs -framework System"
+		# -prebind causes the executable to assume dynamic libraries are at their
+		# preferred address, which speeds up startup. We specify it here
+		# in stead of in LDFLAGS because it does not seem to work for bundle
+		# plugins (as of OSX 10.2).
+		LINKFORSHARED="$extra_undefs -framework System -prebind"
 		if test "$enable_framework"
 		then
 			LINKFORSHARED="$LINKFORSHARED -framework Python"
diff --git a/configure.in b/configure.in
index 9ec081aeb03..c8ba86bb4c3 100644
--- a/configure.in
+++ b/configure.in
@@ -1164,7 +1164,11 @@ then
 		# -u _PyMac_Error is needed to pull in the mac toolbox glue, which is
 		# not used by the core itself but which needs to be in the core so
 		# that dynamically loaded extension modules have access to it.
-		LINKFORSHARED="$extra_undefs -framework System"
+		# -prebind causes the executable to assume dynamic libraries are at their
+		# preferred address, which speeds up startup. We specify it here
+		# in stead of in LDFLAGS because it does not seem to work for bundle
+		# plugins (as of OSX 10.2).
+		LINKFORSHARED="$extra_undefs -framework System -prebind"
 		if test "$enable_framework"
 		then
 			LINKFORSHARED="$LINKFORSHARED -framework Python"