The nine rail stations at the Ewa end of the city’s mass-transit line have been given Hawaiian names that experts say are reflective of ancient place names and legendary sites along the rail route.

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation last year convened a working group made up of Hawaiian-language experts, community leaders, educators and cultural practitioners to recommend a Hawaiian name for each of 21 planned rail stations.

The first set of station names, spanning from Kapolei to Aloha Stadium, was announced Wednesday, initiating a 30-day public comment period. After the comment period, the working group will formally recommend the names to the HART board for approval.

“Part of what we wanted was to make sure that the stations show Hawaiian presence,” said community volunteer Mahealani Cypher, who serves as chairwoman of the working group. “Every station has a story to go with it. … We hope this will be a great opportunity to connect our communities with the culture and history of the areas.”

Educator and cultural advocate Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, who also serves on the working group, said a great deal of thought and research went into the naming of each station.

“It is an honor to contribute to an effort that will afford a greater level of dignity and respect and a greater level of integrity when it comes to the presence of Hawaiian names — not just simply composed out of thin air, but actually derived from the history and the storied places, our wahi pana, of the project track,” Wong-Kalu said.

She added that although the rail project has been a divisive issue among some Native Hawaiians, she chose to participate in the working group to have a voice in the process.

“My personal approach to this was that no matter what people feel about this as a mode of transportation, that I would get behind the opportunity for this to be … a moving museum of knowledge and information,” Wong-Kalu said. “This is an opportunity to teach people and to ensure that the presence and the face and the names and the very sound of our islands will echo through the articulation of our place names.”

Kawika Farm, cultural planner for HART, said the Hawaiian names will be used as the primary station names. Placeholder names that have been used until now will be replaced.

The station names, and their cultural significance according to members of the working group:

>> Kroc Center station: Kualaka‘i. The name in Hawaiian means “to show the way, stand and lead.” It was the historic name for the coastal area near Kalaeloa.

>> University of Hawaii at West Oahu station: Keone‘ae. Meaning the fine, soft, powdery sand, it is the name of a historic fishing village that once existed where Farrington Highway and Kualakai Parkway intersect.

>> Ho‘opili station: Honouliuli. Meaning “dark bay,” it’s the name of the largest ahupuaa — a traditional land division that extended from the uplands to the sea — on the most southwest tip of Oahu. The ahupuaa is believed to have been named after a Hawaiian chief.

>> West Loch station: Ho‘ae‘ae. Meaning “to make soft or fine,” Ho‘ae‘ae is an ahupuaa between Honouliuli and Waikele. The area had terraces watered by springs.

>> Waipahu Transit Center station: Pouhala. Meaning “pandanus (hala) post” or pillar, the name refers to a historically important fishpond of the area. Today it is the name of a 70-acre tidal wetland in Waipahu that serves as a wildlife sanctuary.

>> Leeward Community College station: Halaulani. Halaulani can mean “heavenly halau” (meeting house) or “chief’s house.” It refers to an ancient land section situated between three ponds in the area: Hanaloa, Eo and Hanapouli. The land at one time had a heiau or temple called Ahu‘ena or Ha‘ena, which dated back to the era of Kamehameha I.

>> Pearl Highlands station: Waiawa. Meaning “milkfish water,” Waiawa is an ahupuaa known to have the largest watershed on Oahu. It was cited in traditions and historical accounts for the area where Leeward Community College sits.

>> Pearlridge Center station: Pu‘uloa. Meaning “long hill,” Pu‘uloa refers to the ancient land area that marked the entrance to Keawalau o Pu‘uloa, meaning “the many bays of Pu‘uloa,” known today as Pearl Harbor. In Hawaiian folklore, the waters of Pu‘uloa were protected by shark gods.

>> Aloha Stadium station: Halawa. The name means “curve,” as in a road or along a beach. It is the last ahupuaa of the Ewa district. The area was once home to a sacred place known as Kapu‘ukapu, or the forbidden hill, which implies the area once held religious and ceremonial significance.

“These Hawaiian names for our stations help anchor the rail project in the root culture of our island,” HART Executive Director Andrew Robbins said in a statement.

The working group will next focus on names for the remaining 12 stations.

To provide input on the names, email info@honolulutransit.org.