What's the meaning of 少フシテ?


I was reading [this
article](https://www.i-manabi.jp/system/regionals/regionals/ecode:2/65/view/8206)
on 香川県 in the early 明治 period when I encountered this phrase:

> 山峰 **少フシテ** 平地多ク

I've seen stuff like ふ meaning う (思ふ→思う), but that doesn't seem to apply here.
I'm guessing this means 山峰 **少くて** 平地多く.

Is this transformation of く → ふ common? If so, why is it 少ふして and yet the
transformation is not applied to 多く to become 多ふ as well? A source describing
this would be awesome.




It is a technically wrong, but then very popular sort of spelling for
少【すくな】うして (canonically 少【すく】なうして).

After multi-syllable coalescence in the [Late Middle
Japanese](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_Middle_Japanese) period took away
a considerable portion of phonological distinction manifested in the
traditional orthography (based on Early Middle Japanese), people usually
spelled words while inferring from the correspondence between their own
pronunciation and the common pattern of spelling. That makes representation of
word-internal or long vowels quite unstable in the actual world.

As a general tendency, _vowel morae that are derived from grammatical
alteration_ were likely spelled as if having //h// consonant (はひふへほ in place
of あいうえお) regardless of etymology, probably after the quantitatively dominant
ハ行四段活用 verbs.

> 用ひる (correctly 持つ + 率【ゐ】る > 用ゐる [[motiwiru]] > 用いる [[motɕiːru]])  
>  書ひて (correctly 書きて [[kakite]] > 書いて [[kaite]])  
>  来ねへ (correctly 来なへ *[[kənape]]? > 来ない [[konai]] > 来ねえ [[koneː]])

In the (modern) Western dialects, many conjugative endings are smoothed down
to long vowels. The original form すくなくして has developed into スクノーシテ
(//sukunoːsite//). In this case, such long vowels were often written like
//oː// → あふ/おふ, //juː// → いふ, //joː// → えふ.

Despite historical incorrectness, some of those once widespread spellings are
still used today (even after the orthographic reform) to set some [ye
olde](https://gizmodo.com/ye-olde-is-fake-old-english-and-youre-
mispronouncing-1679780566) atmosphere.

  * **かほり** (correctly [かをり](https://kobun.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%8B%E3%82%92%E3%82%8A) [[kawori]] > かおり [[kaori]]) [![シクラメンのかほり](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uzFN9.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uzFN9.png)
  * **どぜう** (correctly [どぢゃう](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%B3%A5%E9%B0%8C%E3%83%BB%E9%B0%8C-341915) [[dodjau]] > どじょう [[doʑoː]]) [![合羽ばし どぜう 飯田屋](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NEn18.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NEn18.png)
  * **せうゆ** (correctly [しゃういう](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E9%86%A4%E6%B2%B9-79930) [[(t)ɕaũ.iu]] > しゃうゆ [[ɕau.ju]] > しょうゆ > [[ɕoːju]]) [![料理のさしすせそ](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QgBWp.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QgBWp.png)

* * *

> why is it 少ふして and yet the transformation is not applied to 多く to become 多ふ
> as well?

Because the change in Classical adjective 連用形: 少なく > 少なう (> 少のう) never
affected the 中止法 usage. In a nutshell, it only applies when the 連用形 form
connects to (i.e. modifies or modified by) the right next word. 中止法 has become
so rare in the spoken language that I don't know whether there are dialects
that universally applies this mutation.

> 山峰（少なく／少なう）して平地多く  
>  山峰（少なく／× 少なう）、平地多し

This is somewhat parallel to the split of verbal 連用形 (so-called _masu-form_
and _te-form_ ).

> 酒を **買い** 、家へ帰る。 (written language; 中止法)  
>  酒を **買って** 、家に帰る。 (Tokyo)  
>  酒を **[買うて]【コーテ】** 、家へ帰る。 (Osaka)




It is a technically wrong, but then very popular sort of spelling for
少【すくな】うして (canonically 少【すく】なうして).

After multi-syllable coalescence in the [Late Middle
Japanese](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_Middle_Japanese) period took away
a considerable portion of phonological distinction manifested in the
traditional orthography (based on Early Middle Japanese), people usually
spelled words while inferring from the correspondence between their own
pronunciation and the common pattern of spelling. That makes representation of
word-internal or long vowels quite unstable in the actual world.

As a general tendency, _vowel morae that are derived from grammatical
alteration_ were likely spelled as if having //h// consonant (はひふへほ in place
of あいうえお) regardless of etymology, probably after the quantitatively dominant
ハ行四段活用 verbs.

> 用ひる (correctly 持つ + 率【ゐ】る > 用ゐる [[motiwiru]] > 用いる [[motɕiːru]])  
>  書ひて (correctly 書きて [[kakite]] > 書いて [[kaite]])  
>  来ねへ (correctly 来なへ *[[kənape]]? > 来ない [[konai]] > 来ねえ [[koneː]])

In the (modern) Western dialects, many conjugative endings are smoothed down
to long vowels. The original form すくなくして has developed into スクノーシテ
(//sukunoːsite//). In this case, such long vowels were often written like
//oː// → あふ/おふ, //juː// → いふ, //joː// → えふ.

Despite historical incorrectness, some of those once widespread spellings are
still used today (even after the orthographic reform) to set some [ye
olde](https://gizmodo.com/ye-olde-is-fake-old-english-and-youre-
mispronouncing-1679780566) atmosphere.

  * **かほり** (correctly [かをり](https://kobun.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%8B%E3%82%92%E3%82%8A) [[kawori]] > かおり [[kaori]]) [![シクラメンのかほり](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uzFN9.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uzFN9.png)
  * **どぜう** (correctly [どぢゃう](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%B3%A5%E9%B0%8C%E3%83%BB%E9%B0%8C-341915) [[dodjau]] > どじょう [[doʑoː]]) [![合羽ばし どぜう 飯田屋](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NEn18.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/NEn18.png)
  * **せうゆ** (correctly [しゃういう](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E9%86%A4%E6%B2%B9-79930) [[(t)ɕaũ.iu]] > しゃうゆ [[ɕau.ju]] > しょうゆ > [[ɕoːju]]) [![料理のさしすせそ](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QgBWp.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QgBWp.png)

* * *

> why is it 少ふして and yet the transformation is not applied to 多く to become 多ふ
> as well?

Because the change in Classical adjective 連用形: 少なく > 少なう (> 少のう) never
affected the 中止法 usage. In a nutshell, it only applies when the 連用形 form
connects to (i.e. modifies or modified by) the right next word. 中止法 has become
so rare in the spoken language that I don't know whether there are dialects
that universally applies this mutation.

> 山峰（少なく／少なう）して平地多く  
>  山峰（少なく／× 少なう）、平地多し

This is somewhat parallel to the split of verbal 連用形 (so-called _masu-form_
and _te-form_ ).

> 酒を **買い** 、家へ帰る。 (written language; 中止法)  
>  酒を **買って** 、家に帰る。 (Tokyo)  
>  酒を **[買うて]【コーテ】** 、家へ帰る。 (Osaka)

