diff --git a/core/includes/common.inc b/core/includes/common.inc
index e2a28c3..37336d6 100644
--- a/core/includes/common.inc
+++ b/core/includes/common.inc
@@ -1912,10 +1912,14 @@ function drupal_http_header_attributes(array $attributes = array()) {
  *     internal to the site, $options['language'] is used to determine whether
  *     the link is "active", or pointing to the current page (the language as
  *     well as the path must match). This element is also used by url().
+ *   - 'render': A boolean value indicating whether the the function should
+ *     return a rendered string (TRUE) or a structured array for rendering later
+ *     (FALSE). Defaults to TRUE.
  *   - Additional $options elements used by the url() function.
  *
- * @return string
- *   An HTML string containing a link to the given path.
+ * @return mixed
+ *   Either an HTML string containing a link to the given path or an array for
+ *   containing the structure of the element for rendering later.
  *
  * @see url()
  * @see theme_link()
@@ -1935,6 +1939,7 @@ function l($text, $path, array $options = array()) {
     'query' => array(),
     'html' => FALSE,
     'language' => NULL,
+    'render' => TRUE,
   );
 
   // Because l() is called very often we statically cache values that require an
@@ -1988,6 +1993,15 @@ function l($text, $path, array $options = array()) {
   // Sanitize the link text if necessary.
   $text = $variables['options']['html'] ? $variables['text'] : check_plain($variables['text']);
 
+  // Return an array if render is FALSE.
+  if ($variables['options']['render'] === FALSE) {
+    return array(
+      'path' => $url,
+      'attributes' => $attributes,
+      'text' => $text,
+    );
+  }
+
   return '<a href="' . $url . '"' . $attributes . '>' . $text . '</a>';
 }