Wedding ring: On which hand is it worn?

You want to get married and show your love and connection to the world through marriage and your wedding rings? But on which hand is the wedding ring worn? Right or left?

In our journal "Wedding Ring: On which hand is it worn?" we want to provide you with some answers and dispel legends or myths about wearing the wedding ring.

In Germany, the wedding ring is traditionally worn on the right hand, but more and more couples in Germany are choosing the left hand.

For the tradition of wearing the wedding ring on the right hand in Germany, there are various derivations. The most well-known is that the practice of wearing it on the right ring finger goes back to a Bible quote. In Exodus 15:6, it is mentioned that the right hand "performs great wonders" and is generally considered the good side. Accordingly, it is believed that people decided to wear wedding rings on the right hand because marriage and the symbolic wedding ring are naturally meant to represent the good.

Today, there are no fixed rules regarding how to wear wedding rings; you decide for yourselves where you want to wear your rings and what suits you best. For example, some wear the ring on a chain around their neck because they do not like wearing rings or because it is not possible due to work-related reasons. However, if it is worn on the hand, the ring finger is almost always the finger of choice, either right or left depending on the country.

This is attributed to the myth of the love vein, Vena Amoris. It was mistakenly believed in the past that the vein from the ring finger leads directly to the heart and is connected to it. Therefore, the ring finger is considered a symbol of love.

In countries like Germany, Austria, Poland, Norway, or Ukraine, the wedding ring is traditionally worn on the right hand. In almost all other countries like the USA, Italy, or Switzerland, the wedding ring is traditionally worn on the left hand.

Wearing the wedding ring on the left hand is based on the misconception about the "Vena Amoris". This love vein is said to lead directly from the left ring finger to the heart. Even though this has been medically disproven today, this myth still stands for many as a romantic symbol of love and the connection between this finger and the heart. Even here in Germany, due to this romantic significance, wearing the ring on the left hand is becoming increasingly popular.

Wedding ring and Verlobungsring can be combined either on the left or the right hand after the wedding. We describe in the journal which hand is best to wear the engagement ring on: Engagement Ring: Which Hand is the Right One?

If you want to wear the engagement ring together with the wedding ring, it is important to choose the design of the engagement ring at the time of purchase so that it can serve as a stacking ring. The symbolic meaning of the engagement ring as particularly beautiful is Pre-assembly ring Before the wedding ring, which represents the established love, the engagement ring secures the marriage.

We think it's nice that you can individually decide on which hand you want to wear your rings, whether following the romantic myth of the "Vena Amoris" on the left hand or due to German tradition on the right. Of course, there can also be practical reasons for choosing one hand over the other, for example, if you are right-handed and work a lot with your hands, it might be advantageous to wear the ring on the left.

We wish you much joy in selecting your wedding rings.