rancheria

[ran-chuh-ree-uh, rahn-che-ree-ah]

noun

Chiefly Southwestern U.S.

plural

rancherias 

1. a family household unit or settlement.

2. a hut or house where rancheros live.

3. a village of such huts.

Example Sentences

Other local tribes, including the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, oppose the project, which was halted by a judge last month.

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This weekend, Sacramento will host a major international gathering affiliated with the “slow food” movement, and to the surprise of some, the Wilton Rancheria is the top sponsor of the three-day Terra Madre Americas.

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“Native people are the original slow food people, right?,” said Jesus Tarango, chairman of the Wilton Rancheria, which has more than 1,000 members.

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But they were robbed again when Congress passed the Rancheria Act of 1958, which terminated land trust obligations to dozens of California tribes.

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Finally in 2009, the Wilton Rancheria regained federal recognition, which allowed the tribe 15 years later to assume control of a 77-acre parcel in Wilton, not far from the Cosumnes River.

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