diff --git a/wagtail/wagtailadmin/templates/wagtailadmin/skeleton.html b/wagtail/wagtailadmin/templates/wagtailadmin/skeleton.html
index a816e59c1c..e6019c4e8e 100644
--- a/wagtail/wagtailadmin/templates/wagtailadmin/skeleton.html
+++ b/wagtail/wagtailadmin/templates/wagtailadmin/skeleton.html
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 <!doctype html>
 {% load compress %}
-<!--[if lt IE 7]>      <html class="no-js lt-ie9 lt-ie8 lt-ie7"> <![endif]-->
-<!--[if IE 7]>         <html class="no-js lt-ie9 lt-ie8"> <![endif]-->
-<!--[if IE 8]>         <html class="no-js lt-ie9"> <![endif]-->
-<!--[if gt IE 8]><!--> <html class="no-js"> <!--<![endif]-->
+<!--[if lt IE 7]>      <html class="no-js lt-ie9 lt-ie8 lt-ie7"  lang="{{ LANGUAGE_CODE|default:"en-gb" }}"> <![endif]-->
+<!--[if IE 7]>         <html class="no-js lt-ie9 lt-ie8"  lang="{{ LANGUAGE_CODE|default:"en-gb" }}"> <![endif]-->
+<!--[if IE 8]>         <html class="no-js lt-ie9"  lang="{{ LANGUAGE_CODE|default:"en-gb" }}"> <![endif]-->
+<!--[if gt IE 8]><!--> <html class="no-js"  lang="{{ LANGUAGE_CODE|default:"en-gb" }}"> <!--<![endif]-->
 <head>
     <meta charset="utf-8" />
     <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge,chrome=1" />
