Deseret
Encyclopedia
Deseret is a term derived from the Book of Mormon
, a scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and other Latter Day Saint groups. According to the Book of Mormon, "deseret" meant "honeybee" in the language of the Jaredite
s, a group believed by Mormons to have been led to the Americas during the time of the construction of the Tower of Babel
(see ).
Deseret was proposed as a name for the U.S. state
of Utah
. Brigham Young
—governor of Utah Territory
from 1850 to 1858 and President of the LDS Church from 1847 to 1877—favored the name as a symbol of industry. Young thought his followers should be productive and self-sufficient, a trait he had perceived in honeybees. The LDS-organized territory petitioned for statehood as the State of Deseret
in 1849-1850, but the petition was rejected by the U.S. Congress
because of the vast size of the relatively unpopulated area that was controlled exclusively by the Church. Later attempts at statehood used the federally-recognized Utah Territory
name instead, which was derived from the resident Ute
Indians meaning "People of the Mountains".
Some vestiges of the name survive. For example, the state symbol of Utah
is a beehive
; this emblem is represented on both the state seal
, state flag
, and marker shields for state highways. The state nickname is the "Beehive State" and the honeybee is Utah's official state insect. Deseret appears twice on the Utah stone located on the 220 foot landing of the Washington Monument
.
Book of Mormon
The Book of Mormon is a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement that adherents believe contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from approximately 2600 BC to AD 421. It was first published in March 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr...
, a scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and other Latter Day Saint groups. According to the Book of Mormon, "deseret" meant "honeybee" in the language of the Jaredite
Jaredite
The Jaredites are a people written of in the Book of Mormon, principally in the Book of Ether. In the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother, at the time of the Tower of Babel. According to the Book of Mormon, the people fled across the Ocean via...
s, a group believed by Mormons to have been led to the Americas during the time of the construction of the Tower of Babel
Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel , according to the Book of Genesis, was an enormous tower built in the plain of Shinar .According to the biblical account, a united humanity of the generations following the Great Flood, speaking a single language and migrating from the east, came to the land of Shinar, where...
(see ).
State of Deseret
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
—governor of Utah Territory
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
from 1850 to 1858 and President of the LDS Church from 1847 to 1877—favored the name as a symbol of industry. Young thought his followers should be productive and self-sufficient, a trait he had perceived in honeybees. The LDS-organized territory petitioned for statehood as the State of Deseret
State of Deseret
The State of Deseret was a proposed state of the United States, propositioned in 1849 by Latter-day Saint settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never recognized by the United States government...
in 1849-1850, but the petition was rejected by the U.S. Congress
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
because of the vast size of the relatively unpopulated area that was controlled exclusively by the Church. Later attempts at statehood used the federally-recognized Utah Territory
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
name instead, which was derived from the resident Ute
Ute Tribe
The Ute are an American Indian people now living primarily in Utah and Colorado. There are three Ute tribal reservations: Uintah-Ouray in northeastern Utah ; Southern Ute in Colorado ; and Ute Mountain which primarily lies in Colorado, but extends to Utah and New Mexico . The name of the state of...
Indians meaning "People of the Mountains".
Some vestiges of the name survive. For example, the state symbol of Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
is a beehive
Beehive (beekeeping)
A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the subgenus Apis live and raise their young. Natural beehives are naturally occurring structures occupied by honeybee colonies, while domesticated honeybees live in man-made beehives, often in an apiary. These man-made...
; this emblem is represented on both the state seal
Seal of Utah
The Great Seal of the State of Utah was adopted on April 3, 1896 at the first regular session of the Legislature . The original seal was designed by Harry Edwards and cost $65.00...
, state flag
Flag of Utah
The flag of the state of Utah was adopted in 1913 and consists of the seal of Utah encircled in a golden circle on a background of dark navy blue.-Symbolism:...
, and marker shields for state highways. The state nickname is the "Beehive State" and the honeybee is Utah's official state insect. Deseret appears twice on the Utah stone located on the 220 foot landing of the Washington Monument
Washington Monument
The Washington Monument is an obelisk near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate the first U.S. president, General George Washington...
.
Other uses
Various businesses and organizations use "Deseret" as part of their name, particularly those that have connections to the LDS Church. Examples include:- Deseret alphabetDeseret alphabetThe Deseret alphabet is a phonemic English spelling reform developed in the mid-19th century by the board of regents of the University of Deseret under the direction of Brigham Young, second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.In public statements, Young claimed the...
—a non-LatinLatin alphabetThe Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
phoneticPhoneticsPhonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...
alphabetAlphabetAn alphabet is a standard set of letters—basic written symbols or graphemes—each of which represents a phoneme in a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it was in the past. There are other systems, such as logographies, in which each character represents a word, morpheme, or semantic...
developed in the mid-19th century by the board of regents of the University of Deseret (University of UtahUniversity of UtahThe University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
) under the direction of Brigham YoungBrigham YoungBrigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
. - Deseret BookDeseret BookDeseret Book is the largest Latter-day Saint book publisher and also owns a chain of LDS bookstores in the western United States. Over 150 people work in its Salt Lake City headquarters...
—the nation's largest LDS bookstore chain - Deseret First Credit Union—formerly known as the LDS Church Employees Credit Union
- Deseret IndustriesDeseret IndustriesDeseret Industries is a non-profit organization and a division of the Welfare Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It includes a chain of retail thrift stores and work projects operated by the program. Deseret Industries thrift stores are similar to the well-known Goodwill...
—a Utah-based thrift store - Deseret News—Utah's second-largest daily newspaperNewspaperA newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
. The newspaper was established when the area was called Deseret Territory - Deseret RanchDeseret RanchDeseret Ranches refers to the ranching operations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Central Florida. The Ranches include several organizations including Deseret Ranches of Florida, Deseret Cattle and Citrus, Taylor Creek Management, East Central Florida Services, Agreserves, and...
in Florida—a large cattle ranch in the United States