Alicia,

Right.  A "rancho" refers in México to a small plot of land dedicated 
either to agricultural farming or animal husbandry.  It can have one 
or more houses and it usually is the property of a single family.

An "hacienda" is like a ranch but on a much larger scale, it can have 
many houses and people, usually the owners and the workers that 
attend the fields and animals.

A "poblado" is a community or settlement of people larger than a 
rancho or hacienda, but smaller than a village.

The Mexican equivalent of a village is a "villa" or a "pueblo". This 
is the intermediate entity between a poblado and a "ciudad" or city.

Victor
 
--- In ranchos@yahoogroups.com, Alicia Carrillo <alliecar@p...> wrote:
> Victor,
>  
> You are correct in your translation, however at least in our region 
and I think that maybe in the other rural towns a rancho as the 
locals call it can be the one house with it's small plot of land. 
When we went in September you travelled down the dirt roads on the 
outskirts of town and every little house had it's own name such as La 
Palma, La Trinidad, El Monte De Duranes etc.
> I have talked to some of the local elders and they said that in the 
past most Ranchos had more than one dwelling with multiple families 
in each Rancho, but now many of the previous Ranchos are abandoned as 
most everyone has left to live en El Norte con los guerros.
>  
> Joseph, I guess just like the foods of Mexico it's all regional, in 
some areas a Rancho is a big ranch and in some areas it can be a 
little cottage.
>  
> Alicia
>