diff --git a/share/mk/src.opts.mk b/share/mk/src.opts.mk
--- a/share/mk/src.opts.mk
+++ b/share/mk/src.opts.mk
@@ -132,6 +132,7 @@
     LLVM_ASSERTIONS \
     LLVM_COV \
     LLVM_CXXFILT \
+    LOADER_BACKTRACE \
     LOADER_GELI \
     LOADER_KBOOT \
     LOADER_LUA \
@@ -318,6 +319,12 @@
 .if ${__T:Mpowerpc*}
 BROKEN_OPTIONS+=LOADER_GELI LOADER_LUA
 .endif
+# Backtrace doesn't work on powerpc, alas
+.if ${__T:Mpowerpc*}
+BROKEN_OPTIONS+=LOADER_BACKTRACE
+.endif
+
+
 
 # Kernel TLS is enabled by default on amd64 and aarch64
 .if ${__T} == "aarch64" || ${__T} == "amd64"
diff --git a/stand/Makefile b/stand/Makefile
--- a/stand/Makefile
+++ b/stand/Makefile
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@
 S.${MK_FORTH}+=		forth
 S.${MK_LOADER_LUA}+=	liblua
 S.${MK_LOADER_LUA}+=	lua
+S.${MK_LOADER_BACKTRACE}+=libbacktrace
 S.yes+=			defaults
 S.yes+=			fonts
 S.yes+=			images
diff --git a/stand/defs.mk b/stand/defs.mk
--- a/stand/defs.mk
+++ b/stand/defs.mk
@@ -71,6 +71,14 @@
 LIBSA32=	${BOOTOBJ}/libsa32/libsa32.a
 .endif
 
+# Backtrace doesn't work everywhere, so allow it to be disabled.
+.if ${MK_LOADER_BACKTRACE} == "yes"
+LIBBACKTRACE=	${BOOTOBJ}/libbacktrace/libbacktrace.a # Nothing when not configured
+CFLAGS+=	-DLOADER_BACKTRACE
+LIBEXECINFO=	${SRCTOP}/contrib/libexecinfo
+CFLAGS+=	-I${LIBEXECINFO}
+.endif
+
 # Standard options:
 CFLAGS+=	-nostdinc
 # Allow CFLAGS_EARLY.file/target so that code that needs specific stack
diff --git a/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile b/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+# $FreeBSD$
+
+# Note: This pulls together libgcc_eh (basically libunwind) and libexecinfo, or
+# at least the bits that are needed to work in the reduced-space of libstand
+# programs
+
+#LOADER_NO_SPIKE=t
+
+.include <src.opts.mk>
+
+LIB=		backtrace
+NO_PIC=
+MK_SSP=		no
+WARNS?=	2
+
+## From libgcc_eh (Makefile and Makefile.inc merged with tweaks for loader env)
+
+COMPILERRTDIR=	${SRCTOP}/contrib/llvm-project/compiler-rt
+UNWINDINCDIR=	${SRCTOP}/contrib/llvm-project/libunwind/include
+UNWINDSRCDIR=	${SRCTOP}/contrib/llvm-project/libunwind/src
+
+SRCS_EXC+=	int_util.c
+
+STATIC_CFLAGS+=${PICFLAG} -fvisibility=hidden -DVISIBILITY_HIDDEN
+STATIC_CXXFLAGS+= -fvisibility=hidden -fPIC
+
+.PATH: ${COMPILERRTDIR}/lib/builtins
+.PATH: ${UNWINDSRCDIR}
+SRCS_EXC+=	gcc_personality_v0.c
+SRCS_EXC+=	Unwind-EHABI.cpp
+SRCS_EXC+=	Unwind-sjlj.c
+SRCS_EXC+=	UnwindLevel1-gcc-ext.c
+SRCS_EXC+=	UnwindLevel1.c
+SRCS_EXC+=	UnwindRegistersRestore.S
+SRCS_EXC+=	UnwindRegistersSave.S
+SRCS_EXC+=	libunwind.cpp
+
+SRCS+=		${SRCS_EXC}
+
+FLAGS_EXC=	-include ${.CURDIR}/unwind-hacks.h \
+		-fno-exceptions \
+		-funwind-tables \
+		-I${UNWINDINCDIR}
+
+.for file in ${SRCS_EXC:M*.c}
+CFLAGS.${file}+=	${FLAGS_EXC}
+. if ${MK_ASAN} != "no"
+# False-positives during stack unwinding
+CFLAGS.${file}+=	-fno-sanitize=address
+. endif
+.endfor
+
+.for file in ${SRCS_EXC:M*.cpp}
+CXXFLAGS.${file}+=	${FLAGS_EXC}
+CXXFLAGS.${file}+=	-fno-rtti
+. if ${MK_ASAN} != "no"
+# False-positives during stack unwinding
+CXXFLAGS.${file}+=	-fno-sanitize=address
+. endif
+.endfor
+CXXSTD?=	c++11
+
+# We do ugly things to make floats and doubles look like ints, this works except
+# for a format that's hard to fix w/o hacking the format. Since the arg is
+# really a float, and is the same size as a float for all our ABIs, just
+# suppress the warning: Things will work at intended.
+CXXFLAGS.libunwind.cpp+=	-Wno-format
+
+# Probably need to just move this earlier or use CXXFLAGS
+# XXX likely want to hoist it up into defs.mk -- if it's even needed
+.if ${MK_DIRDEPS_BUILD} == "yes"
+# Avoid dependency on lib/libc++
+CFLAGS+=	-isystem ${SRCTOP}/contrib/llvm-project/libcxx/include -nostdinc++
+.endif
+
+## From libexecinfo for backtrace, et al
+
+LIBEXECINFO=	${SRCTOP}/contrib/libexecinfo
+.PATH:	${LIBEXECINFO}
+SRCS_EI=	unwind.c
+# XXX these need libelf SRCS_EI+=	backtrace.c symtab.c
+.for file in ${SRCS_EI}
+CFLAGS.${file}+=	-I${UNWINDINCDIR}
+.endfor
+SRCS+=${SRCS_EI}
+
+.include <bsd.lib.mk>
diff --git a/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile.depend b/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile.depend
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/stand/libbacktrace/Makefile.depend
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+# $FreeBSD$
+# Autogenerated - do NOT edit!
+
+DIRDEPS = \
+	include \
+	include/xlocale \
+
+
+.include <dirdeps.mk>
+
+.if ${DEP_RELDIR} == ${_DEP_RELDIR}
+# local dependencies - needed for -jN in clean tree
+.endif
diff --git a/stand/libbacktrace/unwind-hacks.h b/stand/libbacktrace/unwind-hacks.h
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/stand/libbacktrace/unwind-hacks.h
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+/* Hacks for libunwind */
+#define fprintf(f, fmt...) printf(fmt)
+#define fflush(x) (0)
+
+/*
+ * Note: Although we RUN on Linux when we're inside of loader.kboot, we compile on
+ * FreeBSD, and the #ifdefs that are in libunwind and compiler-rt are all compile-time
+ * not runtime.
+ *
+ * libexecinfo's backtrace, however, does need a __linux__ #define for a
+ * specific location. This file isn't needed for libexecinfo, though.
+ */
+
+/*
+ * Limit subset of features that are appropriate for boot loader.
+ */
+#define _LIBUNWIND_IS_NATIVE_ONLY
+#define _LIBUNWIND_USE_FRAME_HEADER_CACHE
+#define _LIBUNWIND_IS_BAREMETAL
+#define _LIBUNWIND_HAS_NO_THREADS
+
+/*
+ * libunwind uses alloca by default, so rediret it to the builtin one. This
+ * allows it to allocate space in more situations (the alternative is to
+ * allocate it from the heap, which is unsafe in some situations).
+ */
+#define alloca __builtin_alloca
+
+/*
+ * Noramlly, the boot loader defines double and float to ensure they aren't used
+ * at all. However, there's code in libunwind to cope with the FPU state. We
+ * don't really need this functionality for out use-case, so we redefine
+ * double/float as an integer of the same size. We don't need to worry about the
+ * 'long double' swamp, which is harder to do with no-code-changes to the
+ * upstream code.
+ */
+#undef double
+#undef float
+#define double uint64_t
+#define float uint32_t
diff --git a/tools/build/options/WITHOUT_LOADER_BACKTRACE b/tools/build/options/WITHOUT_LOADER_BACKTRACE
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/build/options/WITHOUT_LOADER_BACKTRACE
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Do not build backtrace support for the bootloader.
+
diff --git a/tools/build/options/WITH_LOADER_BACKTRACE b/tools/build/options/WITH_LOADER_BACKTRACE
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tools/build/options/WITH_LOADER_BACKTRACE
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Build backtrace support for the bootloader.
+This option does does not work on all powerpc platforms, though, and cannot be enabled.