Maven is a package manager and build automation tool for the Java programming language. It is used to manage dependencies for Java projects, making it easier to manage and install required libraries and packages. Maven is similar to other package managers like pip (Python), npm (JavaScript), and Composer (PHP). It helps developers to easily include third-party libraries and packages in their Java projects, as well as manage updates and versioning. Maven is widely used in the Java community and is an essential tool for any Java developer. In addition to managing dependencies, Maven can also be used to build, test, and package Java projects. It provides a standard structure for Java projects and makes it easy to automate build processes.