This paper argues that the distribution of the Pāli vocatives *bhikkhave* and *bhikkhavo* in the canon is determined by prosody and syntax, not by historical or dialectal origins as is commonly assumed. Refuting the theory that *bhikkhave* is a preserved "Māgadhism" reflecting the Buddha's speech, the author demonstrates a structural and complementary distribution between the two forms. *Bhikkhavo* functions as an emphatic vocative, used at the beginning of prose sentences—notably in stock introductory formulas—and exclusively in verse, a pattern that parallels the use of the emphatic vocative *bhaddante*. Conversely, *bhikkhave* is the non-emphatic, or clitic, form which never occurs initially and is always attached to a preceding word within a sentence, mirroring the usage of the clitic *bhante*. This distinction is therefore intrinsic to the syntactical and recitational structure of the canonical language itself, making explanations based on regional dialects or later scribal interpolations unnecessary.
