diff --git a/library/init/trace.lean b/library/init/trace.lean
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..9519ec16e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/library/init/trace.lean
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+-- Copyright (c) 2016 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
+-- Released under Apache 2.0 license as described in the file LICENSE.
+-- Author: Leonardo de Moura
+prelude
+import init.string
+
+/- This function has a native implementation that displays the given string in the regular output stream. -/
+definition trace {A : Type} (s : string) (f : unit → A) : A :=
+f ()