Which hand is the engagement ring on?

Which hand is the engagement ring on? It's a question whose answer varies depending on where in the world you look. In Sweden, we wear both the engagement ring and the wedding ring on the left hand, but this is not the case in all parts of the world. In Sweden, it is also common for both people in the couple to have an engagement ring, while in other countries it is only the woman who wears the ring until the wedding itself.

If you want to follow customs and traditions in Sweden, the engagement ring should sit on the left hand . The rings are to be worn on the ring finger, where the wedding ring is usually placed above the engagement ring, as a way to "lock" the engagement into a full wedding.

What other countries wear the ring on the left hand?

However, it is not only in Sweden that the engagement ring must be worn on the left hand. Countries such as Finland, Great Britain and the United States also wear the ring on the ring finger of the left hand. However, if we look at how it looks in other parts of the world, it is not entirely unusual that both the engagement ring and the wedding ring can be worn on the right hand instead, and there are several reasons for this.

The most common reason why engagement rings are worn on the right hand is because right-handed handshakes are most often used to seal a deal. However, there are no rules or laws that say you have to wear the ring on a certain hand for the marriage to be valid. You can choose which hand or which finger you want to wear your ring on.

Which hand do you wear the engagement ring on if you live in Sweden? Then it is clearly the left hand that applies. Few are aware of why the left hand is used to hold up engagement and wedding rings, but there is a good reason for this. The tradition comes from ancient Egypt, when it was believed that a very special love vein ran from the ring finger to the heart. This vein goes by the Latin name Vena Amoris, which means exactly the vein of love in Swedish.

Until the 17th century, there was a law to wear the ring on the left ring finger, but that law no longer exists. As previously mentioned, you can choose how and on which finger you want to wear your ring.

Can you wear the ring around your neck?

Some choose to wear their engagement ring on a chain around their neck, but there are a lot of divided opinions on this. Having the ring on a chain can mean that you have a job that does not allow jewelry during working hours, but it can also mean that you have lost or gained weight and the ring no longer fits.

The reason why many people are confused about this way of wearing engagement or wedding rings is simply due to the actual meaning of the placement. According to tradition, you usually wear the ring around your neck if you have become a widow or widower. In today's modern society, however, few are aware of this meaning and therefore engagement rings are worn around the neck, without it signifying that one has lost their partner.