@@ -41,7 +41,8 @@
 from gitdb.typ import str_tree_type
 from git.compat import (
     defenc,
-    force_text
+    force_text,
+    force_bytes
 )
 
 S_IFGITLINK = S_IFLNK | S_IFDIR     # a submodule
@@ -124,7 +125,7 @@ def write_cache(entries, stream, extension_data=None, ShaStreamCls=IndexFileSHA1
         write(entry[4])         # ctime
         write(entry[5])         # mtime
         path = entry[3]
-        path = path.encode(defenc)
+        path = force_bytes(path, encoding=defenc)
         plen = len(path) & CE_NAMEMASK      # path length
         assert plen == len(path), "Path %s too long to fit into index" % entry[3]
         flags = plen | (entry[2] & CE_NAMEMASK_INV)     # clear possible previous values
 
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 )
 from git import (
     IndexFile,
+    Repo,
     BlobFilter,
     UnmergedEntriesError,
     Tree,
@@ -45,6 +46,7 @@
     IndexEntry
 )
 from git.index.fun import hook_path
+from gitdb.test.lib import with_rw_directory
 
 
 class TestIndex(TestBase):
@@ -780,3 +782,14 @@ def test_index_bare_add(self, rw_bare_repo):
         except InvalidGitRepositoryError:
             asserted = True
         assert asserted, "Adding using a filename is not correctly asserted."
+
+    @with_rw_directory
+    def test_add_utf8P_path(self, rw_dir):
+        # NOTE: fp is not a Unicode object in python 2 (which is the source of the problem)
+        fp = os.path.join(rw_dir, 'ø.txt')
+        with open(fp, 'w') as fs:
+            fs.write('content of ø')
+
+        r = Repo.init(rw_dir)
+        r.index.add([fp])
+        r.index.commit('Added orig and prestable')