Dhamma Wheel Buddhist Forum

Greetings


Just a quick question really

Why is it some monks have their name as "Buddhadasa Bhikkhu" with the Bhikkhu at the end, but others like "Bhikkhu Bodhi" have it at the begining?

Is their any reason for this or is it just they way it gets written and spoken?


Metta

clw_uk wrote: Just a quick question really

Why is it some monks have their name as "Buddhadasa Bhikkhu" with the Bhikkhu at the end, but others like "Bhikkhu Bodhi" have it at the begining?

Is their any reason for this or is it just they way it gets written and spoken?

Good question. I imagine it is just cultural or personal preference of the bhikkhu.

Another similar question might be why do some use the title 'bhikkhu' and others 'bhante.' Of course, both apply as 'bhante' means 'Venerable.' For example, all of the monks here tend to use the 'bhikkhu' title when signing their names, but not 'bhante.'

I imagine it is their humbleness to which we can respond by using the bhante term back or both.

clw_uk wrote:Greetings


Just a quick question really

Why is it some monks have their name as "Buddhadasa Bhikkhu" with the Bhikkhu at the end, but others like "Bhikkhu Bodhi" have it at the begining?

Is their any reason for this or is it just they way it gets written and spoken?


Metta

Some Asian language naming conventions tend to be the reverse of western naming conventions, so family name comes first and any titles go at the end. Monks sometimes use one or the other naming convention, but either works.

This was asked a while ago and my above response was originally just a guess, but Ven. Dhammanando confirmed it.

Greetings,

Someone else this question elsewhere.

I think the Sri Lankan method is to put Bhikkhu first, and the Thai method is to put Bhikkhu last.

Metta,
Retro.

retrofuturist wrote:Greetings,

Someone else this question elsewhere.

I think the Sri Lankan method is to put Bhikkhu first, and the Thai method is to put Bhikkhu last.

Metta,
Retro.

Which one is right?


















JK (as in just kidding, not my initials).

SeerObserver wrote: Which one is right?

The Sri Lankan way.

Just kidding, does there have to be a right way?

As far as I know, there is no "right".

Here's the other thread, Ven Dhammanando's response was:

Just regional conventions. 'Bhikkhu' before the name is the norm in Sri Lanka and Burma; 'bhikkhu' after the name is the norm in Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. That's assuming the word bhikkhu is used at all, which isn't always the case; in Asia one more often finds 'thera' or some regional title such as 'chao khun' or 'sayadaw' used instead.

http://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=762" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thanks Tex