Wepwawet’s name — wp-w3wt — is actually a title or epithet (Opener of the Ways), though titles serving as names are not so unusual in the ancient Egyptian language. This title is seen applied to other Deities such as Wesir(Osiris), Nit, and the function of the title or role is sometimes applied to Anubis as well through syncretism and association.
The word wp-w3wt itself is made up of the verb wpi (open, divide, separate, cleave) + w3wt (plural: ways, roads, paths) and is referenced in several similar but unique ways by different Egyptologists, including “He who cleaves open the paths” [Terence DuQuesne] and “Opener of the roads” [Le Page Renouf]). Some of Wepwawet’s epithets and associations referencing the ‘opening’ idea include:
- He opens the way
- He opens the way against the enemy
- He opens the mountain for Wesir
- He opens the way in the 13th Upper Egyptian nome
- Who opens the way in Abydos
- He opens the way for the deceased
- Heaven and earth shall open for the deceased, for he is Wepwawet
As a name, many instances (particularly early ones) of Wepwawet are spelled phonetically, followed by the Gardiner signs 𓃧 (E18) or 𓃨 (E19) as determinatives, which formally link Wepwawet to the name, though in some cases, these signs stand as ideographic depictions of the God himself. Though there are a minor amount of instances where this ideogram may refer in fact to Sed in specific, it can widely and safely be interpreted in most cases on its own to be that of Wepwawet / wp-w3wt.
One theory suggests that the title wp-w3wt could have also been an epithet of the God Sed, and that Wepwawet himself was also one in the same God. Unfortunately we don’t have enough facts to make a for-sure determination, but while no hats can be hung on this line of questioning, the theory is also not entirely a shot in the dark either. There is a lot of evidence in Egyptological research showing the evolution of Gods over time through linked or partnered aspects, syncretic links, the absorption of roles from one generation or incarnation to the next, and so on. Wepwawet may not only be linked to the God Sed, but also to another obscure Jackal Deity, the Heliopolitan Wepiu whose name may carry meaning as ‘the Opener’ (among other meanings). All three Deities (Sed, Wepiu, and Wepwawet) are known for similar roles, and it is possible Wepwawet absorbed functions of the prior two.
Wp-w3wt also appears and is interpreted as an epithet of the Goddess Nit (or Neith, Old Kingdom funerary) who shares some characteristics with Wepwawet including as a warrior and having associations with royalty [Lexikon Der Ägyptologie B.IV]. This epithet may be more accurately represented as wpt-w3wt. There is not enough information or material to better determine whether the term wp(t)-w3wt was in fact meant as an epithet, or if it were rather meant to be a syncretic relationship (Nit-Wepwawet) [Terence DuQuesne Jackal Divinities], though there are a few additional instances of Nit’s relationship to the Jackal Deities in both Wepwawet and Anubis (including at least one known priest/devotee of “Nit wp(t)-w3wt“), and the association between Nit and Wepwawet survives all the way through to Roman times.
Etymological aspects of the name/title:
- wpt or wpwy — horns
- wpt may also refer to the top or crown of the head
- wpwt — Message or Messengers (Sesh Kemet)
- wpwt — message, orders, task, disclosure
- wpwty — messenger
- wpwAtyw, wpwtyw — messengers (plural)
- w3t — road (singular)
- w3wt – roads (plural)
- wpi — (open, divide, separate, cleave)
It is noted the word wpi in later Egyptian history is found to be used as a short form of the name Wepwawet in personal names (Duquesne, Jackal Divnities).
Some spellings of Wepwawet’s name include:
