diff --git a/searx/webapp.py b/searx/webapp.py
index 0c5ed457..cfb55251 100644
--- a/searx/webapp.py
+++ b/searx/webapp.py
@@ -178,9 +178,12 @@ flask_babel.get_translations = _get_translations
 
 def _get_browser_language(request, lang_list):
     for lang in request.headers.get("Accept-Language", "en").split(","):
+        if ';' in lang:
+            lang = lang.split(';')[0]
         locale = match_language(lang, lang_list, fallback=None)
         if locale is not None:
             return locale
+    return settings['search']['default_lang'] or 'en'
 
 
 @babel.localeselector