diff --git a/lisp/org-compat.el b/lisp/org-compat.el
index 760428496..6e582b8c1 100644
--- a/lisp/org-compat.el
+++ b/lisp/org-compat.el
@@ -327,7 +327,7 @@ Works on both Emacs and XEmacs."
     (apply 'propertize string properties)))
 
 (defmacro org-find-library-dir (library)
-  `(file-name-directory (locate-library ,library)))
+  `(file-name-directory (or (locate-library ,library) "")))
 
 (defun org-count-lines (s)
   "How many lines in string S?"