Peddler: a walking salesman; a traveling trader; one who travels about, retailing small wares; a hawker; a huckster; a street vendor.

These days, the word peddler may describe someone who sells illegal drugs, or stolen goods.

Peddler shows up in English in the 1200’s. No one is really sure where the word originated, but some etymologists think it might come from French pied, which of course, came from the Latin word for foot, pes, pedis. In this sense, the word could refer to a trader travelling on foot.