Engagement ring on right hand

Getting an engagement ring is not just any purchase. It is a piece of jewelry full of love, joy and care. The ring can look in many different ways and it is important that it suits the wearer's taste and personality. In the Western world, the engagement ring symbolizes a promise of a beautiful and rewarding future together, and it is usually worn on the right hand. But why is that? And why do Swedes wear it on the left hand instead?

An old tradition

The tradition of wearing an engagement ring on the right hand goes back to ancient beliefs about what marriage means. In the past, it was common for marriage to be a business deal rather than a romantic event, and it was a way to unite families and property.

Whole nations could be united through marriage, and therefore love and feelings were considered secondary. If the couple liked each other, it was of course fortunate, but not necessary. In that context, the right hand was always considered the appropriate one as it symbolized trustworthiness and honesty, while the left was viewed with suspicion.

Many believed that the left hand was associated with the powers of darkness, and the Latin word for left was sinistram, which is a loanword in the Swedish "sinister" which means sinister, dark and eerie. Shaking hands in a business transaction was therefore always done with the right hand, and if you were to enter a house or a boat for the first time, you did so with your right foot.

So it was natural that the engagement ring would be worn on the right hand, representing a credible promise. Today, this tradition continues in countries such as Greece, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Austria and Switzerland.

This is why Swedes prefer to wear their engagement ring on their left hand.

Even today, it is most common to wear the engagement ring on the right hand, but there are exceptions. In Sweden, it has long been worn on the left hand, and also in the USA and the UK. According to an ancient belief that can be traced back to ancient Egypt, a "vein of love" runs from the left ring finger to the heart, and therefore the left hand was preferred for engagement rings.

This was a subject of much debate during the Middle Ages, as many considered it a pagan tradition that had no place in Christian culture. Over time, the differences evened out, but the left hand is still the rule in Sweden. Even here, however, there are exceptions. If a person is left-handed, they may sometimes choose to wear their engagement ring on their right hand instead for purely practical reasons, so that it is not in the way when performing various tasks.

Engagement rings changing hands

In some cultures, it is customary to change the hand on which the engagement ring is worn after marriage. In this way, the wearer shows that he or she has moved from the promise stage to the actual fulfillment of said promise, and is a cultural signal that shows the person's social status.

Sometimes the custom regarding the placement of the engagement ring and the wedding ring in relation to each other also varies - in Sweden, for example, it is most common for them to be worn together. Another exception is the Netherlands, where according to old custom, the engagement ring is worn on the right hand if you are Protestant and on the left if you are Catholic.