diff --git a/CHANGES.md b/CHANGES.md
index 3686fe9b8e..dd12d29ebd 100644
--- a/CHANGES.md
+++ b/CHANGES.md
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ Themes:
 
 Grammars:
 
+- fix(java) prevent false positive variable init on `else` [Josh Goebel][]
 - enh(php) named arguments [Wojciech Kania][]
 - fix(php) PHP constants [Wojciech Kania][]
 - fix(angelscript) incomplete int8, int16, int32, int64 highlighting [Melissa Geels][]
diff --git a/src/languages/java.js b/src/languages/java.js
index 8c55aae215..b46857485e 100644
--- a/src/languages/java.js
+++ b/src/languages/java.js
@@ -187,7 +187,7 @@ export default function(hljs) {
       },
       {
         begin: [
-          JAVA_IDENT_RE,
+          regex.concat(/(?!else)/, JAVA_IDENT_RE),
           /\s+/,
           JAVA_IDENT_RE,
           /\s+/,
diff --git a/test/markup/java/bugs.expect.txt b/test/markup/java/bugs.expect.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2f3fd93f88
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/markup/java/bugs.expect.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+
+<span class="hljs-comment">// `else x =` should not be detected as a variable creation</span>
+<span class="hljs-keyword">if</span> ( O == l )
+  l = O1;
+<span class="hljs-keyword">else</span>
+  a = <span class="hljs-number">01</span>;
diff --git a/test/markup/java/bugs.txt b/test/markup/java/bugs.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..409f7ccafe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/markup/java/bugs.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+
+// `else x =` should not be detected as a variable creation
+if ( O == l )
+  l = O1;
+else
+  a = 01;