Dennis A. Wright (who used to be associated with Utah Missions Inc.) wrote a lengthy but poorly researched book. However, to his credit, he acknowledges that Nauvoo is a genuine Hebrew word (contra Fawn Brodie in the first edition of No Man Knows My History, for e.g.):
A similar Hebrew word appears in
Isaiah 52:7. Latter Day Saints often referred to Nauvoo as “the city beautiful”,
or “the city of Joseph”—which was actually the name of the city for a short
time after the city charter was revoked—or other similar nicknames) after being
granted a charter by the state of Illinois. (Dennis A. Wright, Millions of
Mormons Can’t Be Wrong, or Can They? [Lamb and Lion Publications, 2023], 58
n. 243)
Smith also attracted a few wealthy and
influential converts, including John C. Bennett, the Illinois quartermaster and
general. Bennett used his connections in the Illinois state legislature to
obtain an unusually liberal charter for the new city, which Smith had renamed “Nauvoo”
(Hebrew נָאווּ, meaning “to be beautiful”). (Ibid., 59-60)
Further Reading:
Is "Nauvoo" a genuinely Hebrew Word?
