The native Eblaite names for these deities remain unknown, though the Iron Age Aramaic Sefire steles refer to the consort of Samaš as Nur(u) ("luminary"), possibly corresponding to nrt ỉlm špš, the most common epithet of Shapshu.
In a letter to the king of Ugarit (KTU 2.42), Shapshu (as špš ʿlm) is named second in a formulaic list of deities, behind only Baal.
In the incantation KTU 1.100, a character referred to as 'the mother of the stallion and the mare' (ủm.pḥl.pḥlt) calls to Shapshu (her 'mother', though this may be meant in an honorific sense) for assistance in a matter relating to snakebite, as her children are apparently in danger.
[3]: 378–387 In KTU 1.82, another incantation against snakebite, Shapshu is one of three benign gods (along with Baal and Anat) invoked to protect the victim from the depredations of Tunnan, Resheph, Mot, various serpents, and the creatures of Ḥoranu.
[20]: 157–164 The 17th-15th century BCE cylinder seal AO 20138[c] depicts a female deity radiating wave-like solar rays, thought to be either Shapshu or the Hittite Sun goddess of Arinna.
[16]: 133 The sun deity in Iron Age Phoenicia is consistently called šmš (Phoenician: 𐤔𐤌𐤔), rather than špš, and is attested in both male and female forms.
Azize suggests that cultural influence from Mesopotamia or the Greek cult of Helios may have led to identification of the deity as male.
[16]: 193 Funerary inscriptions such as the 6th century BCE Sarcophagus of Eshmunazar II make reference to tḥt šmš, "life under the sun", interpreted as referring to ephemeral life on the Earth, but also an eternal sun (šmš ʿlm, recalling the epithet špš ʿlm) as on the Shipitbaal inscription from Byblos, a symbol of eternity and the relation between the living and the dead.
In one of the Phoenician texts at Pyrgi, line 4-5 reads '[Thebarie Velanus, king of Kisry] in the month of the sacrifice of the Sun, as a gift to her temple...'.
[8]: 104 [16]: 183–185 In the second century CE, Pausanias reports a conversation with a Sidonian in Aegium who referred to the sun as Apollo, and described them as being the father and sole parent of Asklepios while contrasting Greek and Phoenician notions of the gods.
[26] Later in the Epic, KTU 1.4 viii 21-27, Baal instructs his emissaries to travel to deliver a message to Mot in the netherworld by joining Shapshu on her journey there.
The Ugaritic texts reveal significant parallels between the goddesses Athirat and Shapshu, suggesting a possible identification.
Both are referred to as "Queen" (rbt), a title signifying supreme authority in the pantheon, and they are described as mothers of the gods, key figures in creation, and central to maintaining cosmic order.
[35] Another significant reason for this conflation would be a passage found in Ugaritic inscription K1.23 which describes the myth known as The Gracious and Most Beautiful Gods.
In this text, twins Shahar (dawn) and Shalim (dusk) are described as offspring of El through two women he meets at the seashore.