"Ka Mate" ([ˈkaˌmatɛ]) is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, the historic leader of the iwi of Ngāti Toa of the North Island of New Zealand during the Musket Wars.

Te Rauparaha composed "Ka Mate" circa 1820 as a celebration of life over death after his lucky escape from pursuing Ngāti Maniapoto and Waikato enemies.

[3] Upon emerging from the pit and into the sun he was grateful to Rangikoaea and her husband Te Wharerangi, composing the Ka Mate haka as a result.

He pounga rahui te uira ka rarapa ketekete kau ana To peru kairiri mau au e koro e!

To think I would tremble to a pack of wolves either seeing fear or running away, because they would surely fall into the pit of shame as food for the hounds to chow down on in delight!!

It took two Māori during this time (Buck Shelford and Hika Reid) to revolutionise the way it was delivered, culminating in a style close to the original haka.

In an interview with ESPN shortly before the 2019 Rugby World Cup, All Blacks scrum-half TJ Perenara, the team's designated haka leader at the time and a Māori who was raised in the region where Te Rauparaha lived, explained the process of selecting which haka will be performed before a given match:There's Ka Mate and there's Kapa O Pango.

(correct as of 8 July 2023) In total all 22 international rugby union sides that have played the All Blacks have faced "Ka Mate" before a test match.

On 14 November 2024, lawmaker Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke –representing Te Pāti Māori as a Member of Parliament since 2023– protested a first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill that attempts to clarify interpretations of an 1840 Treaty of Waitangi between the Māori and The Crown by tearing a copy of the bill in half while leading "Ka Mate" with the rest of her party and other opposition compatriots.

In March 2011, New Zealand Rugby Union came to an amicable agreement with the iwi not to bring the mana of the haka into disrepute.

[22] In 2009, as a part of a wider settlement of grievances, the New Zealand government agreed to: In 2021, Glenn Osbourne turned the body of the haka into a ballad in C major.