diff --git a/mkdocs/__main__.py b/mkdocs/__main__.py
index 84e7d3f0..24346c2c 100644
--- a/mkdocs/__main__.py
+++ b/mkdocs/__main__.py
@@ -22,6 +22,9 @@ if sys.platform.startswith("win"):
     else:
         colorama.init()
 
+# Hack: stop Click trying to find localization files for help messages.
+os.environ['LANGUAGE'] = 'C'
+
 log = logging.getLogger(__name__)