Utu-hengal was one of the first native kings of Sumer

Sumer

Sumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....

 after centuries of Akkad

Akkad

The Akkadian Empire was an empire centered in the city of Akkad and its surrounding region in Mesopotamia....

ian and Gutian

Guti (Mesopotamia)

The Gutian dynasty came to power in Mesopotamia around 2150 BC , by destabilising Akkad, according to the Sumerian kinglist at the end of the reign of king Ur-Utu of Uruk. They reigned for perhaps around one century...

 rule.

There are several theories regarding his background. The most common is that he was a governor of Uruk

Uruk

Uruk was an ancient city of Sumer and later Babylonia, situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates river, on the ancient dry former channel of the Euphrates River, some 30 km east of modern As-Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.Uruk gave its name to the Uruk...

 who revolted against the Guti during the 22nd century BC

22nd century BC

The 22nd century BC is a century which lasted from the year 2200 BC to 2101 BC.-Events:right|thumb|170px|The [[deluge |Deluge]] tablet of the [[Gilgamesh epic]] in [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]]...

.

After defeating the Guti with the aid of other cities, Utu-hengal established himself as the king of Sumer

Sumer

Sumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....

. He was, however, unable to maintain power, and seven years later Ur-Nammu

Ur-Nammu

Ur-Nammu founded the Sumerian 3rd dynasty of Ur, in southern Mesopotamia, following several centuries of Akkadian and Gutian rule...

, the governor of Ur

Ur

Ur was an important city-state in ancient Sumer located at the site of modern Tell el-Muqayyar in Iraq's Dhi Qar Governorate...

, became the king of Sumer.