the basic process I have used repeatedly (for calling ./configure) to package python, and many other things has not changed.

Today, I repackaged version 2.7.10 (the file listed in 2.7.10.0) just to test the process I was using with 2.7.11

I learned that 2.7.10 does not build with the src and build seperated, while 2.7.11 supports having the src in a different directory (e.g., ../src/python-2.7.11)

root@x064:[/data/prj/aixtools/python]find p* old -name \*.I -ls
44641791 48748 -rw-r--r--  1 root      system    49917952 Mar  1 12:59 python-2.7.10/installp/ppc/aixtools.python.2.7.10.0.aix537.I
102500359 48758 -rw-r--r--  1 199      1954     49927680 Nov  3 15:00 python-2.7.10.0/installp/ppc/aixtools.python.2.7.10.0.aix537.I
102307460 46487 -rw-r--r--  1 199      1954     47602688 Oct 31 17:14 old/python-2.7.8.2/installp/ppc/aixtools.prj.python.2.7.8.2.aix537.I
44377168 44107 -rwxrwxr--  1 199      1954     45165056 Sep 26  2013 old/Python-2.7.3/installp/ppc/aixtools.Python.2.7.3.0.I
44433716 46063 -rw-r--r--  1 199      1954     47168000 Apr 24  2015 old/python-2.7.8.1/installp/ppc/aixtools.prj.python.2.7.8.1.aix619.I
102373018 46360 -rw-r--r--  1 199      1954     47472128 Nov  3 12:51 old/python-2.7.8.0/installp/ppc/aixtools.python.2.7.8.0.aix537.I

FYI: aix537.I means the program was linked on AIX 5.3 TL7: aix619.I means AIX 6.1 TL9

That is one of the changes mentioned (in 2013 I packaged without a visual reminder of the system used, read - lowest level it would install on properly - e.g., as with python 2.7.3)

Hence, my best guess is that something in the way ceval.c is now holding back the linking.

If there is someone interested in reading the result I can provide the output of /usr/vac/exe/dis Python/ceval.o (disassembly of ceval.o).

Or maybe someone has a better way of getting more specific error message than
        An RLD for section 2 (.data) refers to symbol 0,
        but the storage class of the symbol is not C_EXT or C_HIDEXT.

i.e., I do not see how to recognize "symbol 0" (unless something in the .c file is defining something as NULL over and over again and I am blind to that as well.)