A hacienda (UK: or US: ; Spanish: [aˈθjenda] or [aˈsjenda]) is an estate (or finca), similar to a Roman latifundium, in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, haciendas were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards), mines or factories, with many haciendas combining these activities. The word is derived from Spanish hacer (to make, from Latin facere) and haciendo (making), referring to productive business enterprises.
The term hacienda is imprecise, but usually refers to landed estates of significant size, while smaller holdings were termed estancias or ranchos. All colonial haciendas were owned almost exclusively by Spaniards and criollos, or rarely by mestizo individuals. In Mexico, as of 1910, there were 8,245 haciendas in the country. In Argentina, the term estancia is used for large estates that in Mexico would be termed haciendas. In recent decades, the term has been used in the United States for an architectural style associated with the traditional estate manor houses.
The hacienda system of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Mexico, New Granada, and Peru was an economic system of large land holdings. A similar system existed on a smaller scale in Puerto Rico and other territories. In Puerto Rico, haciendas were larger than estancias; ordinarily grew sugar cane, coffee, or cotton; and exported their crops abroad.
