diff --git a/doc/libxml2-api.xml b/doc/libxml2-api.xml
index 4590003d..481e9310 100644
--- a/doc/libxml2-api.xml
+++ b/doc/libxml2-api.xml
@@ -1907,6 +1907,7 @@
      <summary>error handling</summary>
      <description>the API used to report errors </description>
      <author>Daniel Veillard </author>
+     <exports symbol='initGenericErrorDefaultFunc' type='macro'/>
      <exports symbol='XML_BUF_OVERFLOW' type='enum'/>
      <exports symbol='XML_C14N_CREATE_CTXT' type='enum'/>
      <exports symbol='XML_C14N_CREATE_STACK' type='enum'/>
@@ -2691,7 +2692,6 @@
      <exports symbol='xmlErrorPtr' type='typedef'/>
      <exports symbol='xmlParserErrors' type='typedef'/>
      <exports symbol='_xmlError' type='struct'/>
-     <exports symbol='initGenericErrorDefaultFunc' type='function'/>
      <exports symbol='xmlCopyError' type='function'/>
      <exports symbol='xmlCtxtGetLastError' type='function'/>
      <exports symbol='xmlCtxtResetLastError' type='function'/>
@@ -4315,6 +4315,8 @@
       <info>Returns the attributes required for the specified element.</info>
       <arg name='elt' info='HTML element'/>
     </macro>
+    <macro name='initGenericErrorDefaultFunc' file='xmlerror'>
+    </macro>
     <macro name='inputPop' file='parserInternals'>
     </macro>
     <macro name='inputPush' file='parserInternals'>
@@ -7412,11 +7414,6 @@ crash if you try to modify the tree)'/>
       <arg name='ch' type='const xmlChar *' info='a xmlChar string'/>
       <arg name='len' type='int' info='the number of xmlChar'/>
     </functype>
-    <function name='initGenericErrorDefaultFunc' file='xmlerror' module='error'>
-      <info>DEPRECATED: Use xmlSetGenericErrorFunc.  Set or reset (if NULL) the default handler for generic errors to the builtin error function.</info>
-      <return type='void'/>
-      <arg name='handler' type='xmlGenericErrorFunc *' info='the handler'/>
-    </function>
     <functype name='internalSubsetSAXFunc' file='parser' module='parser'>
       <info>Callback on internal subset declaration.</info>
       <return type='void'/>
diff --git a/error.c b/error.c
index fc5c6dec..563f4720 100644
--- a/error.c
+++ b/error.c
@@ -234,24 +234,6 @@ xmlGenericErrorDefaultFunc(void *ctx ATTRIBUTE_UNUSED, const char *msg, ...) {
     va_end(args);
 }
 
-/**
- * initGenericErrorDefaultFunc:
- * @handler:  the handler
- *
- * DEPRECATED: Use xmlSetGenericErrorFunc.
- *
- * Set or reset (if NULL) the default handler for generic errors
- * to the builtin error function.
- */
-void
-initGenericErrorDefaultFunc(xmlGenericErrorFunc * handler)
-{
-    if (handler == NULL)
-        xmlGenericError = xmlGenericErrorDefaultFunc;
-    else
-        xmlGenericError = (*handler);
-}
-
 /**
  * xmlSetGenericErrorFunc:
  * @ctx:  the new error handling context
diff --git a/include/libxml/xmlerror.h b/include/libxml/xmlerror.h
index d847bfde..cb4f45bf 100644
--- a/include/libxml/xmlerror.h
+++ b/include/libxml/xmlerror.h
@@ -16,6 +16,11 @@
 extern "C" {
 #endif
 
+/*
+ * Backward compatibility
+ */
+#define initGenericErrorDefaultFunc(h) xmlSetGenericErrorFunc(NULL, h)
+
 /**
  * xmlErrorLevel:
  *
@@ -904,9 +909,6 @@ XML_DEPRECATED
 XMLPUBFUN void
     xmlThrDefSetGenericErrorFunc(void *ctx,
                                  xmlGenericErrorFunc handler);
-XML_DEPRECATED
-XMLPUBFUN void
-    initGenericErrorDefaultFunc	(xmlGenericErrorFunc *handler);
 
 XMLPUBFUN void
     xmlSetStructuredErrorFunc	(void *ctx,
diff --git a/testapi.c b/testapi.c
index 930d413e..7b678da1 100644
--- a/testapi.c
+++ b/testapi.c
@@ -29885,40 +29885,6 @@ test_xmlautomata(void) {
     return(test_ret);
 }
 
-#define gen_nb_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr 1
-#define gen_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr(no, nr) NULL
-#define des_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr(no, val, nr)
-
-static int
-test_initGenericErrorDefaultFunc(void) {
-    int test_ret = 0;
-
-    int mem_base;
-    xmlGenericErrorFunc * handler; /* the handler */
-    int n_handler;
-
-    for (n_handler = 0;n_handler < gen_nb_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr;n_handler++) {
-        mem_base = xmlMemBlocks();
-        handler = gen_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr(n_handler, 0);
-
-        initGenericErrorDefaultFunc(handler);
-        call_tests++;
-        des_xmlGenericErrorFunc_ptr(n_handler, handler, 0);
-        xmlResetLastError();
-        if (mem_base != xmlMemBlocks()) {
-            printf("Leak of %d blocks found in initGenericErrorDefaultFunc",
-	           xmlMemBlocks() - mem_base);
-	    test_ret++;
-            printf(" %d", n_handler);
-            printf("\n");
-        }
-    }
-    function_tests++;
-
-    return(test_ret);
-}
-
-
 #define gen_nb_const_xmlError_ptr 1
 #define gen_const_xmlError_ptr(no, nr) NULL
 #define des_const_xmlError_ptr(no, val, nr)
@@ -30214,8 +30180,7 @@ static int
 test_xmlerror(void) {
     int test_ret = 0;
 
-    if (quiet == 0) printf("Testing xmlerror : 7 of 18 functions ...\n");
-    test_ret += test_initGenericErrorDefaultFunc();
+    if (quiet == 0) printf("Testing xmlerror : 6 of 17 functions ...\n");
     test_ret += test_xmlCopyError();
     test_ret += test_xmlCtxtGetLastError();
     test_ret += test_xmlCtxtResetLastError();