The ancient Egyptian name for Anubis, the jackal-headed god of funerary rites, was Inpu.
The name is also transliterated as Anup or Anpu because Egyptian hieroglyphs did not normally record vowels. Greek writers rendered the name as Anubis, the form most familiar today. Anubis was associated with embalming, cemeteries, protection of the dead, and guidance through the afterlife.
Anubis was not simply an Egyptian version of the Greek god Hades. Hades ruled the underworld, while Anubis primarily performed funerary and protective duties. Osiris became the principal ruler and judge of the dead in later Egyptian religious tradition, but Anubis retained important roles in mummification and judgment scenes.