diff --git a/Makefile.am b/Makefile.am
index 08363169..27efe8da 100644
--- a/Makefile.am
+++ b/Makefile.am
@@ -18,3 +18,14 @@ ChangeLog:
 	GIT_DIR=${srcdir}/.git git-log > ChangeLog
 
 dist-hook: ChangeLog
+
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+LINT_SUBDIRS=src # modules
+
+lint:
+	@for subdir in $(LINT_SUBDIRS) ; do \
+		echo "Making $@ in $$subdir"; \
+		(cd $$subdir && $(MAKE) $(AM_MAKEFLAGS) lint) ; \
+	done
+endif LINT
diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index e3071c21..1988eb6e 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -314,6 +314,10 @@ if test x"$COMPOSECACHE" = "xyes"; then
 	AC_DEFINE(COMPOSECACHE,1,[Include compose table cache support])
 fi
 
+dnl Allow checking code with lint, sparse, etc.
+XORG_WITH_LINT
+LINT_FLAGS="${LINT_FLAGS} ${X11_CFLAGS} ${XPROTO_CFLAGS}"
+
 if test "x$GCC" = "xyes"; then
 	GCC_WARNINGS="-Wall -Wpointer-arith -Wstrict-prototypes \
 	-Wmissing-prototypes -Wmissing-declarations \
diff --git a/src/Makefile.am b/src/Makefile.am
index 89f845fd..32f55f03 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/Makefile.am
@@ -380,6 +380,22 @@ preprocess: $(patsubst %.c,%.ii,$(libX11_la_SOURCES))
 .c.ii:
 	$(COMPILE) -E -o $@ `test -f '$<' || echo '$(srcdir)/'`$<
 
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+
+ALL_LINT_FLAGS=$(LINT_FLAGS) $(DEFS) $(DEFAULT_INCLUDES) $(INCLUDES) \
+		$(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
+
+lint:	$(BUILT_SOURCES)
+	for f in $(libX11_la_SOURCES) ; do \
+		$(LINT) $(ALL_LINT_FLAGS) $$f ; \
+	done
+	@for subdir in $(SUBDIRS) ; do \
+		echo "Making $@ in src/$$subdir"; \
+		(cd $$subdir && $(MAKE) $(AM_MAKEFLAGS) lint) ; \
+	done
+endif LINT
+
 #
 # Building ks_tables.h requires the makekeys utility
 #
diff --git a/src/util/Makefile.am b/src/util/Makefile.am
index 72c97758..3ff421d0 100644
--- a/src/util/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/util/Makefile.am
@@ -8,3 +8,14 @@ makekeys_CFLAGS=$(X11_CFLAGS)
 LINK = $(CC) $(AM_CFLAGS) $(CFLAGS) $(AM_LDFLAGS) $(LDFLAGS) -o $@
 
 EXTRA_DIST = mkks.sh
+
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+
+ALL_LINT_FLAGS=$(LINT_FLAGS) $(DEFS) $(DEFAULT_INCLUDES) $(INCLUDES) \
+		$(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
+
+lint:
+	$(LINT) $(ALL_LINT_FLAGS) makekeys.c
+
+endif LINT
diff --git a/src/xcms/Makefile.am b/src/xcms/Makefile.am
index 2251acb7..dac620e5 100644
--- a/src/xcms/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/xcms/Makefile.am
@@ -84,3 +84,15 @@ libxcms_la_SOURCES = \
 
 X11dir = $(libdir)/X11
 dist_X11_DATA = Xcms.txt
+
+
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+
+ALL_LINT_FLAGS=$(LINT_FLAGS) $(DEFS) $(DEFAULT_INCLUDES) $(INCLUDES) \
+		$(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
+
+lint:
+	$(LINT) $(ALL_LINT_FLAGS) $(libxcms_la_SOURCES) -lm
+
+endif LINT
diff --git a/src/xkb/Makefile.am b/src/xkb/Makefile.am
index 896a0995..d5431546 100644
--- a/src/xkb/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/xkb/Makefile.am
@@ -37,3 +37,14 @@ libxkb_la_SOURCES = \
 	XKBGAlloc.c \
 	XKBAlloc.c \
 	XKBlibint.h
+
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+
+ALL_LINT_FLAGS=$(LINT_FLAGS) $(DEFS) $(DEFAULT_INCLUDES) $(INCLUDES) \
+		$(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
+
+lint:
+	$(LINT) $(ALL_LINT_FLAGS) $(libxkb_la_SOURCES) -lm
+
+endif LINT
diff --git a/src/xlibi18n/Makefile.am b/src/xlibi18n/Makefile.am
index 284ff63d..b97316a1 100644
--- a/src/xlibi18n/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/xlibi18n/Makefile.am
@@ -134,3 +134,14 @@ EXTRA_DIST = \
 	lcUniConv/COPYRIGHT \
 	lcUniConv/8bit_tab_to_h.c \
 	lcUniConv/cjk_tab_to_h.c
+
+if LINT
+# Check source code with tools like lint & sparse
+
+ALL_LINT_FLAGS=$(LINT_FLAGS) $(DEFS) $(DEFAULT_INCLUDES) $(INCLUDES) \
+		$(AM_CPPFLAGS) $(CPPFLAGS) $(AM_CFLAGS)
+
+lint:
+	$(LINT) $(ALL_LINT_FLAGS) $(libi18n_la_SOURCES)
+
+endif LINT