Ir-Shemesh means 'city of the sun,' revealing the town's association with solar references that appear in several Canaanite place names. The text identifies it with Beth-Shemesh ('house of the sun'), one of the more prominent cities in the region. Such names likely reflect pre-Israelite Canaanite religious connections to sun worship, though the sites were thoroughly integrated into Israel's tribal system. The Septuagint translation 'city of Sames' preserves both the urban element and the solar connection.