street urchin

A term originating in Victorian England.

street urchin (plural street urchins)

1. (British, obsolescent) A child who lives, or spends most of his or her time, in the streets; sometimes a petty thief or pickpocket.
   • 1956 [1880], Johanna Spyri, Heidi, translation of original by Eileen Hall, page 84:

     She ran to the door and there beheld the ragged street urchin calmly playing his organ.

   • 2020, Raju Kasambe, Indian Grey Hornbill: Unravelling the Secrets, page 94:

     On many occasions, groups of street urchins were seen climbing up large trees for squabs of Rose-ringed Parakeets[.]

• gamin
• guttersnipe
• street child
• street kid