diff --git a/GNUmakefile.in b/GNUmakefile.in
index 4d8fc794bb..30553b2a95 100644
--- a/GNUmakefile.in
+++ b/GNUmakefile.in
@@ -87,29 +87,25 @@ update-unicode: | submake-generated-headers submake-libpgport
 distdir	= postgresql-$(VERSION)
 dummy	= =install=
 
+GIT = git
+
 dist: $(distdir).tar.gz $(distdir).tar.bz2
-	rm -rf $(distdir)
 
-$(distdir).tar: distdir
-	$(TAR) chf $@ $(distdir)
-
-.INTERMEDIATE: $(distdir).tar
+.PHONY: $(distdir).tar.gz $(distdir).tar.bz2
 
 distdir-location:
 	@echo $(distdir)
 
-distdir:
-	rm -rf $(distdir)* $(dummy)
-	for x in `cd $(top_srcdir) && find . \( -name CVS -prune \) -o \( -name .git -prune \) -o -print`; do \
-	  file=`expr X$$x : 'X\./\(.*\)'`; \
-	  if test -d "$(top_srcdir)/$$file" ; then \
-	    mkdir "$(distdir)/$$file" && chmod 777 "$(distdir)/$$file";	\
-	  else \
-	    ln "$(top_srcdir)/$$file" "$(distdir)/$$file" >/dev/null 2>&1 \
-	      || cp "$(top_srcdir)/$$file" "$(distdir)/$$file"; \
-	  fi || exit; \
-	done
-	$(MAKE) -C $(distdir) distclean
+# Note: core.autocrlf=false is needed to avoid line-ending conversion
+# in case the environment has a different setting.  Without this, a
+# tarball created on Windows might be different than on, and unusable
+# on, Unix machines.
+
+$(distdir).tar.gz:
+	$(GIT) -C $(srcdir) -c core.autocrlf=false archive --format tar.gz -9 --prefix $(distdir)/ HEAD -o $(abs_top_builddir)/$@
+
+$(distdir).tar.bz2:
+	$(GIT) -C $(srcdir) -c core.autocrlf=false -c tar.tar.bz2.command='$(BZIP2) -c' archive --format tar.bz2 --prefix $(distdir)/ HEAD -o $(abs_top_builddir)/$@
 
 distcheck: dist
 	rm -rf $(dummy)
@@ -135,4 +131,4 @@ headerscheck: submake-generated-headers
 cpluspluscheck: submake-generated-headers
 	$(top_srcdir)/src/tools/pginclude/headerscheck --cplusplus $(top_srcdir) $(abs_top_builddir)
 
-.PHONY: dist distdir distcheck docs install-docs world check-world install-world installcheck-world headerscheck cpluspluscheck
+.PHONY: dist distcheck docs install-docs world check-world install-world installcheck-world headerscheck cpluspluscheck
diff --git a/meson.build b/meson.build
index c8fdfeb0ec..18b5be842e 100644
--- a/meson.build
+++ b/meson.build
@@ -3359,6 +3359,71 @@ run_target('help',
 
 
 
+###############################################################
+# Distribution archive
+###############################################################
+
+# Meson has its own distribution building command (meson dist), but we
+# are not using that at this point.  The main problem is that, the way
+# they have implemented it, it is not deterministic.  Also, we want it
+# to be equivalent to the "make" version for the time being.  But the
+# target name "dist" in meson is reserved for that reason, so we call
+# the custom target "pgdist".
+
+git = find_program('git', required: false, native: true, disabler: true)
+bzip2 = find_program('bzip2', required: false, native: true)
+
+distdir = meson.project_name() + '-' + meson.project_version()
+
+# Note: core.autocrlf=false is needed to avoid line-ending conversion
+# in case the environment has a different setting.  Without this, a
+# tarball created on Windows might be different than on, and unusable
+# on, Unix machines.
+
+tar_gz = custom_target('tar.gz',
+  build_always_stale: true,
+  command: [git, '-C', '@SOURCE_ROOT@',
+            '-c', 'core.autocrlf=false',
+            'archive',
+            '--format', 'tar.gz',
+            '-9',
+            '--prefix', distdir + '/',
+            '-o', join_paths(meson.build_root(), '@OUTPUT@'),
+            'HEAD', '.'],
+  output: distdir + '.tar.gz',
+)
+
+if bzip2.found()
+  tar_bz2 = custom_target('tar.bz2',
+    build_always_stale: true,
+    command: [git, '-C', '@SOURCE_ROOT@',
+              '-c', 'core.autocrlf=false',
+              '-c', 'tar.tar.bz2.command="@0@" -c'.format(bzip2.path()),
+              'archive',
+              '--format', 'tar.bz2',
+              '--prefix', distdir + '/',
+              '-o', join_paths(meson.build_root(), '@OUTPUT@'),
+              'HEAD', '.'],
+    output: distdir + '.tar.bz2',
+  )
+else
+  tar_bz2 = custom_target('tar.bz2',
+    command: [perl, '-e', 'exit 1'],
+    output: distdir + '.tar.bz2',
+  )
+endif
+
+alias_target('pgdist', [tar_gz, tar_bz2])
+
+# Make the standard "dist" command fail, to prevent accidental use.
+# But not if we are in a subproject, in case the parent project wants to
+# create a dist using the standard Meson command.
+if not meson.is_subproject()
+  meson.add_dist_script(perl, '-e', 'exit 1')
+endif
+
+
+
 ###############################################################
 # The End, The End, My Friend
 ###############################################################