English
ragpicker
From rag + picker.
Proto-Germanic *rawwa-
Old Norse rǫgg ‘tuft’
Old English ragg
Middle English ragge ‘rag, cloth scrap’
English rag
Proto-Germanic *pikkōną ‘to pick, peck, prick’
Proto-West Germanic *pikkōn ‘to peck, strike’
Old English *piccian
Middle English piken ‘to pick at’
Middle English piker ‘a robber or pickpocket’
English picker
Today it means
noun A person who collects and sells unwanted household items such as rags and other refuse for a living, a rag and bone man (UK) or ragman (US).
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “ragpicker”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / ragpicker