Rancherie
Rancherie (also rancheree) is the Canadian-English term for an inhabited area of the First Nations in an Indian reservation in the Canadian province of British Columbia .
The word is an adaptation of the Spanish word ranchería , which describes the living quarters of the ranch workers . It arose before the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858 and was used throughout much of the colony during the following period of the gold rushes and colonization.
In modern parlance, it often refers to new residential areas. Traditionally, it describes the oldest type of settlement in the area, such as typical wooden huts that were built around a church.
There are several residential areas in some reserves. There the rancherie designates a specific - usually the oldest - of the areas. Rancherie does not refer to an entire reserve, but only to the designated settlement area. The term is also used outside of First Nations parlance and is part of the colloquial language in most of the small towns in British Columbia that are near Indian reservations.
The Indian Rancherie in Vancouver
In Vancouver , the term Indian rancherie took on a completely different meaning. This was an area in the city in which the prostitution industry was concentrated until around 1889.
The Kanaka Rancherie in Vancouver
In its historical meaning, the term can also be used for other population groups than indigenous people. Best known is the Kanaka Rancherie in Vancouver's Lost Lagoon . It was the starting point of the local Hawaiian community from the earliest days of Gastown through the 1920s.