Kiriath Arba means town of four
and may indicate that Hebron belonged to a confederacy of four neighbouring settlements (Genesis 14:13, Genesis 14:24). Arba himself was the father of Anak (Joshua 15:13), a man whose descendants were very large and frightening (see Numbers 13:28, Numbers 13:32–33; Deuteronomy 2:10–11, Deuteronomy 2:20–21; Deuteronomy 3:10–13). It seems as if Caleb wanted the city that had caused such fear amongst the other spies as if to demonstrate thereby that their fear was ungrounded.
15 Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba. (Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim.) And the land had rest from war.