noun
young person; young servant
Archaic term for a young person, often a boy, or a young servant. Not used in modern Japanese; encountered only in historical texts.
古文書には「小童」という語が召使いの少年を指して使われている。
In old documents, the word 小童 is used to refer to a young male servant.
The exact derivation is uncertain; the kanji 小 (small) and 童 (child) combine to suggest a young person, and the reading しょうどう follows on'yomi patterns.