Abstract
Monte Albán was founded in the Valley of Oaxaca (Mexico) around 500 bc and grew quickly in size and monumentality. We offer new theoretical perspectives on the dynamic processes associated with this transitional episode of change. Adopting a multiscalar approach, we frame this transition and the rapid growth of the hilltop centre as an innovative social response to defensive concerns as well as other factors that offered new opportunities both to certain powerful individuals and to larger segments of the population. The collective mode of governance that was instituted at Monte Albán coincided with significant in-migration and an era of internal demographic growth. The organization of the early centre, its institutions and layout, were foundational for a highly sustainable urban settlement that endured for more than a millennium.
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