actually, myeong-dong is not an original name and it was not known as a commercial area at first. during the joseon dynasty era, it was mostly a residential district called myeongryebang (). later on, under the japanese colonization, the name was changed to myeongchijeong (). it started to be more like a commercial district during that colonial period. finally it was changed to the current name, myeong-dong in 1946, after independence.