"Ka Mate" is a Māori haka composed by Te Rauparaha, war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe of the North Island of New Zealand.
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Composition
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. He had hidden from them in a food-storage pit, and climbed back into the light to be met by a chief friendly to him – Te Whareangi (the "hairy man").
The haka as composed by Te Rauparaha begins with a chant:
Then follows the main body of the haka:
Use in rugby
"Ka Mate" is the most widely known haka in New Zealand and elsewhere because it has traditionally been performed by the All Blacks, New Zealand's international rugby union team, as well as the Kiwis, New Zealand's international rugby league team, immediately prior to test (international) matches. Since 2005 the All Blacks have occasionally performed another haka, "Kapa o Pango". Since the introduction of "Kapa o Pango" the longest sequence of "Ka Mate" performances by the All Blacks is nine, which occurred between August 22, 2009 and June 12, 2010.
Ownership
Between 1998 and 2006, Ngati Toa attempted to trademark "Ka Mate" to prevent its use by commercial organisations without their permission. In 2006 the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand declined their claim on the grounds that "Ka Mate" had achieved wide recognition in New Zealand and abroad as representing New Zealand as a whole and not a particular trader. In March 2011 The NZ Rugby Union came to an amicable agreement with the iwi not to bring the mana of the haka into disrepute.
In 2009, as a part of a wider settlement of grievances, the New Zealand government agreed to:
"...record the authorship and significance of the haka Ka Mate to Ngāti Toa and ... work with Ngāti Toa to address their concerns with the haka... [but] does not expect that redress will result in royalties for the use of Ka Mate or provide Ngāti Toa with a veto on the performance of Ka Mate...".