Engagement ring

An engagement ring, also known as a betrothal ring, is a ring indicating that the person wearing it is engaged to be married, especially in Western cultures. A ring is presented as an engagement gift by a partner to their prospective spouse when they propose marriage to represent a formal agreement to future marriage. In most Western countries, engagement rings are usually worn only by women, and they are typically adorned with diamonds. In some countries, partners wear matching rings, and engagement rings may also be used as wedding rings. In the Anglosphere, the ring is customarily worn on the left hand ring finger, but customs vary across the world.^{[citation needed]}

Engagement rings have been common in Western countries since at least the time of the Roman Empire. They began to feature diamonds during the Renaissance, although most commoners could not afford diamond rings prior to the discovery of the South African diamond mines in the 19th century. Historically, engagement rings were blessed and then worn during the betrothal ceremony of a couple,^[1][2] but neither the engagement ring nor any other ring is worn at the time when the wedding ring is put by the groom on the finger of the bride as part of the marriage ceremony, and sometimes by the bride onto the groom's finger.^[3] After the wedding, the engagement ring is usually put back on and is usually worn on the outside of the wedding ring.^[3] In the present-day, the giving of the engagement ring "constitutes the subarration".^[4]