Deseret is a word found throughout Utah, in history, modern day businesses, etc., as the word has historical and religious significance with the local LDS / Mormon population. It was first found as a word in the Book of Mormon (a sacred book of scripture in the LDS / Mormon faith), translating as honey bee. When the Mormon settlers came and colonized this area, they applied for statehood within the U.S., and called the area the State of Deseret (a very large area comprising most of the Great Basin), so named because of the industrious nature of the honey bee, which the name symbolizes.
When the Mormon settlers first colonized the area, they brought a very large influx of Mormon converts with them as well, many of whom did not speak English (many early converts were Dutch, Scandinavian, Welsh, etc.). A phonetic alphabet was invented, to help facilitate their education of English, and this alphabet was known as the Deseret Alphabet.
The word Deseret also was given to the first University in the area, which was then called University of Deseret, but is now called the University of Utah (a beehive, another symbol of Deseret / Utah, is still part of the official university logo, or at least was for many years).
Even today, Utah has the nickname The Beehive State, which refers to the industrious nature that its inhabitants strive to uphold.
The Utah state flag, seal, etc., all have the beehive on them as references to Deseret, and so though it may appear a strange name to those not familiar with Utah history, it has been around longer than even the name Utah has.