Getting married is perhaps one of the biggest commitments you could ever make in your whole life, if not the number one biggest commitment ever. After all, you are committing yourself to spend the rest of your life with one other person.

There is nothing sweeter or more romantic than that. With that being said, when it comes to such a long-term commitment, there is a lot of thought that has to go into it. One of the things that you are probably going to spend a very long time thinking about is the wedding ring.

Sure, when it comes to engagement and wedding rings, the settings and stones are probably what you will spend the most time thinking about, but one thing that many people forget is the engraving. If you really want to take things to the next level and show your love how much you really do care about them, engraving a wedding wearing is always a good idea.

Engraving a wedding ring allows you to add a romantic, funny, or traditional sentiment to the equation. Of course, there are plenty of different wedding ring engraving ideas out there, ones that are spiritual, religious, funny, cute, and ones that come from songs, poetry, movies, and so much more.

Therefore, we’re going to provide you with literally hundreds of the best wedding ring engraving ideas out there. We’re also going to be answering your most commonly asked questions about engraving wedding rings, and we’ll provide you with some good tips on how to engrave a wedding ring as well.

Some Tips on Choosing the Best Wedding Ring Engraving

Before we provide you with a list of ideas, let’s first go over some general tips on how to choose the best wedding ring engravings.

1. Seeing as this is something that will be on the wedding ring for the rest of your life, take a few weeks to decide what the best option is. This is not something you have to rush.
2. If you can’t come up with anything good on the spot, or even after a couple of weeks, remember that engraving wedding rings is something you can do at any point.
3. Always make sure to plan ahead; many jewelers are busy for months and months on end, so you might have to wait a little while before the engraving can be done.
4. You always want to check the final message to see that everything is right. Yes, spelling mistakes do happen.

The Best Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas

Right now, we’re going to provide you with some of the best wedding ring engraving ideas out there, starting with ones that are relatively spiritual and religious in nature. Don’t worry though, because we will lighten things up and move on to wedding ring engraving ideas that are cute, funny, and more.

Spiritual and Religious Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas

Of course, for many people out there, marriage and weddings are still a religious institution. Yes, in recent times, marriage has moved away from being so religious in nature, but there are still many people out there who get married in churches and who view marriage as a spiritual and religious contract. So, here we have a number of religious and spiritual wedding ring engraving ideas for you to take a look at.

1. Do Everything in Love (1 Corinthians 16:14)
2. Dues Nox Iunxit (Latin: God Joined Us)
3. The chapter and verse of any personally meaningful Bible verse
4. God Unite Both in Love
5. Ani L’dodi V’dodi Li (Song of Solomon 2:16)
6. God Joined Us
7. In God and Thee My Joy Shall Be
8. Thy Love Is Better Than Wine (Song of Solomon 1:2)
9. Love is Patient, Love is Kind. (1 Corinthians 13:4)
10. Where You Go I Will Go (Ruth 1:16)

Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas from Poetry and Songs

Weddings can be quite artistic in nature. If you and your partner are people who are really into music and poetry, then using some of these poetry and song-based wedding ring engraving ideas might be ideal for you.

1. At Last
2. Crazy In Love
3. Some Things Are Meant to Be
4. You Make Me Feel So Brand New
5. I Carry Your Heart (E.E. Cummings, I Carry Your Heart)
6. So Happy Together
7. Only Love Sets Us Free (Maya Angelou, Touched By An Angel)
8. I Am Your Mirror (Rumi, When I Am With You)
9. A Whole New World
10. I Would Walk 500 Miles
11. Only You and I, My Love (Pablo Neruda, The Queen)
12. You Make My Dreams Come True
13. Here, There & Everywhere
14. I’m Yours

Traditional Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas

Let’s take a look at some really traditional and cute wedding ring engraving ideas. If you like old school and classic elements, then these wedding ring engraving ideas could be right for you.

1. Your Wedding Date
2. “To My Wife” or “To My Husband”
3. The Name of a Significant Location
4. Your Engagement Date
5. The Date You Met
6. A Monogram of Your New Initials
7. The Date You First Said “I Love You”
8. Your Nicknames For Each Other
9. Your New Last Name

Funny Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas

Sure, weddings are pretty serious institutions, and it’s a commitment that has to be taken very seriously. With that being said, there is no reason why weddings and marriages can’t have an element of fun. After all, marriage probably won’t last too long if there is no fun at all. So, let’s take a look at some funny wedding ring engraving ideas.

1. To Aid and Abet
2. Put Me Back On!
3. No Take Backs
4. A Perfect Fit
5. I Love You More Than Coffee
6. Contractually Yours
7. Alarm Will Sound If Removed
8. Non-Refundable
9. Resistance Is Futile
10. The Better Half
11. Better Than Bacon
12. Dibs!
13. You’re Stuck With Me
14. Insert Finger Here
15. Challenge Accepted
16. Ditto
17. Us Against the World
18. You’re My Lobster
19. Ride or Die
20. A Deal Is A Deal
21. Finders Keepers

Romantic and Sentimental Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas

If you and your partner are sappy, romantic, and sentimental, then these sentimental and romantic wedding ring engraving ideas could be right for you.

1. I Love You
2. I Thee Wed
3. Our Love Is Eternal
4. Forever Begins
5. True Love
6. Forevermore
7. Adventure Awaits
8. Forever
9. I Do
10. All My Days
11. With You Always
12. For My Soulmate
13. I Choose You
14. You Have My Heart
15. All My Love
16. My Love
17. Eternity
18. Always
19. Happily Ever After
20. Forever and Ever
21. Forever and Forever and Forever and Forever and (continuous around ring)
22. We Are One
23. Written in the Stars
24. Forever Yours
25. Love
26. Beloved Husband/Wife
27. Love Endures
28. Forever and Ever
29. Forever and Forever and Forever and Forever and (continuous around ring)
30. Beloved Husband/Wife
31. Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
32. Choose Love, Dream Forever
33. Come Live in My Heart Always
34. Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
35. Choose Love, Dream Forever
36. Come Live in My Heart Always
37. My Fairy Tale
38. Eternal Love
39. All I Want is a Lifetime With You
40. All My Love, All My Life
41. Forever and Ever
42. Forever and Forever and Forever and Forever and (continuous around ring)
43. Beloved Husband/Wife
44. Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
45. Choose Love, Dream Forever
46. All My Love
47. Come Live in My Heart Always
48. As Long as There Are Stars
49. As Long as We Live Let Us Love
50. Faithful Love Will Ever Last
51. For You Alone
52. Forever
53. Forever & Always
54. Destined to Be
55. Dreams Do Come True
56. Encircled in Love
57. Endless As This Shall Be Our Bliss
58. Eternal Love
59. Eternally
60. Eternally Yours
61. Ever Thine, Ever Mine, Ever Ours
62. Every Valley to Every Summit
63. All My Love Always & Forever
64. All of Me Loves All of You
65. All Ways, Always
66. Always
67. Always, Always & Always
68. Always & Forever
69. Faith Hope & Love
70. Forever Begins (wedding date)
71. Forever Entwined
72. From This Day Forward
73. Grow Old with Me
74. Forevermore
75. Friendship, Faithfulness, Love
76. From (wedding date) to Forever
77. ∞
78. ∞ + 1
79. I Will Kiss You Every Day
80. Joined for Life
81. I Love You to Infinity and Beyond
82. I Promise to Love You Forever
83. Forever in Love
84. Forever in My Heart
85. Forever Isn’t Long Enough
86. Joy Without End
87. Happily Ever After Begins!
88. I Love You More
89. I Love You No Matter What
90. Kismet
91. Laughter, Honesty, Loyalty, Love
92. Let Us Go Then, You and I
93. Life Begins
94. Home is Where We Are
95. How Do I Love Thee
96. I’ll Love You Forever & Ever
97. I’m Always With You
98. If Ever Two Were One, Then Surely We
99. I Can’t Wait for Forever With You
100. I Do
101. I Have, I Do & I Will
102. How Much? Too Much!
103. My Love Is Forever Yours
104. My One True Love
105. My Partner, My Love, My Best Friend
106. My Stars & My Universe
107. Love is Forever
108. Love is the Greatest Adventure
109. Love is You
110. Love Me and Leave Me Not
111. Love of My Life
112. Love Sets Us Free
113. My Forever Love
114. My Heart is in Your Hands
115. Love, Courage, Truth and Light
116. Love, Faith, Hope Together
117. Love & Kisses
118. Happy Ever After
119. Here Is My Heart, Guard It Well
120. Love Is All in All
121. Love Is Eternal
122. My Life Begins
123. My Love, My Life, My Friend
124. My Life & My Love
125. Never Another You
126. My End & My Beginning
127. No Heart More True Than Mine to You
128. No Matter What
129. Once Together, Never Apart
130. One Heart
131. One Life, One Love
132. Never Doubt I Love
133. Never to Part
134. Loved With Purpose & Beyond Measure
135. More Than All the Stars
136. My Heart Is Your Heart Always
137. My Heart Is Yours
138. My Heart Is Yours Forever
139. More Than Anything
140. More Than Yesterday, Less Than Tomorrow
141. Written in the Stars
142. XOXOXOXOX
143. You & Me Babe
144. You and No Other
145. My Best Friend
146. ne Love, One Lifetime
147. Our Life Begins
148. Our Love is Eternal
149. Promise
150. Soulmates
151. So This is Love
152. Still a Spark
153. The Beginning of Forever
154. To Making Our Own Rules Forever
155. To My One & Only
156. To the Moon and Back
157. Today, Tomorrow, Always
158. No One But You
159. No Remedy for Love But to Love More
160. Two Souls Entwined for Eternity
161. Two Souls, One Heart
162. With All That I Am
163. With These Rings We Bind Our Love
164. Now and Forever
165. To Love, Honor & Cherish Always
166. Only You
167. Today, Tomorrow, Forever
168. The Rest of Our Lives Starts Today
169. The Best is Yet to Come
170. You & Only You
171. Until the End of the World
172. United as One
173. We Did It!
174. Wing to Wing, Oar to Oar
175. Uncountable Blessings
176. We Are Ours Now
177. With You Always
178. Upon a Star
179. ‘Til Death Us Do Part
180. To Have and to Hold
181. Two Hearts, One Life
182. The Start of Something Beautiful
183. This Day and Always
184. Until the Day After Forever
185. Wrapped Around You Forever
186. Together Forever
187. True Love
188. Truly, Madly, Deeply
189. Two Become One
190. You’re My Favorite Person
191. Yours
192. Yours Forever
193. Worth the Wait
194. You Are My Strength and My Love
195. You Are the Love of My Heart
196. You Have My Heart
197. You Put Your Arms Around Me & I’m Home
198. You’ll Always Be My Everything
199. With All My Heart

Combination Wedding Ring Engraving Ideas – For Both Rings

In case you are confused with what we mean by combination wedding ring engraving ideas, we mean that one of the rings has one half of the engravement, and the other ring has the other half of the engraving. So, when both rings come together, they produce a lovely and romantic message. Let’s take a look at some examples.

1. I Found My Other Half / My Other Half Found Me
2. I Love You / I Know
3. Little Spoon / Big Spoon
4. I Carry Your Heart With Me / I Carry It In My Heart
5. I Am My Beloved’s / My Beloved Is Mine
6. To Infinity / And Beyond
7. Love Is Patient / Love Is Kind
8. To Have / To Hold

For decades, it seemed like diamond engagement rings, and gold wedding bands were the norm, and our grandparent’s generation didn’t consider alternatives. Today, more couples are choosing unusual stones and settings, tattoos, smart rings, and other creative interpretations of the symbolism of marriage. In fact, the classic stones and bands of wedding rings are a relatively modern invention and remain open to interpretation. Let’s look at the history of diamond rings and marriage.

The History of Engagement Rings

The origins of today’s engagement ring traditions and uses go back to ancient times. It is speculated that engagement rings began in ancient Egypt, but it was first documented in ancient Rome. In ancient Rome and Greece, a woman was given a gold ring as part of the betrothal process. In ancient times, as today, the ring had several important meanings:

• The circular shape of the ring symbolized eternity, a bond or an oath that lasts a lifetime
• The ring was made of precious metal and was high in value, signifying deep commitment and acting as a form of insurance for the bride if the marriage should be called off
• The ring was a visible symbol of relationship status, indicating to other people that the person was in a committed relationship and intended to marry

In the 7th and 8th centuries, the use of engagement rings was formalized differently by the Catholic Church and the Visigoth Code. Then, exchanging rings was required to announce the intention to marry, preventing secret marriages, and also used as a form of a pledge, preventing people from calling off engagements after rings were exchanged.

The first documented use of a diamond engagement ring was in 1477, in the imperial court of Vienna, and diamond engagement rings became increasingly popular among the upper classes.

In 1866, diamonds were discovered in South Africa, and the subsequent exporting and availability of diamonds made diamond engagement rings more affordable and accessible for the lower classes.

After WWI and the Great Depression in the US, the popularity of diamond engagement rings was at an all-time low. The De Beers diamond cartel sought to increase sales in the 1930s and 1940s as the economy recovered and introduced the slogan “a diamond is forever” in 1947. As a result, the sale of diamonds in the US grew from just $23 million in 1939 to over $2 billion in 1979.

Despite thousands of variations of engagement traditions over the centuries and around the world, an engagement ring today means almost the same thing it meant in the 2nd century BC: It symbolizes love and commitment, reinforced by the real economic value of the ring and visible for the world to see.

How Did Wedding Rings Evolve?

While the traditions of giving the bride an engagement ring date back to ancient times, the exchange of rings between the spouses at the wedding ceremony originated in the Christian rituals of the Middle Ages.

As the church became more deeply involved in licensing and overseeing marriage, and as the concept of monogamy and fidelity was extended to both partners, the modern wedding ring became more common. The bride and groom would exchange rings, and the groom would wear a wedding band, while the bride wore both her engagement ring and her wedding band. 

In the Middle Ages, gimmel rings, an early form of puzzle ring, became a popular part of the wedding tradition. A gimmel ring is a ring with two or three (or more) bands that all link together to form a single complete ring and probably originated in the Middle East. In 16th century Europe, an engaged couple would wear one band of the ring and then join them at the wedding ceremony.

A third band could be worn by a witness to the betrothal, who would then contribute their part of the ring to the completed ring at the wedding. In 1525, Martin Luther married Catherine Bora using a gimmel ring inscribed with the words “whom God has joined, let no man put asunder.”

The tradition of both bride and groom wearing a wedding ring after the ceremony was common in Europe by the 1800s and became a tradition in the US in the 20th century.

When Did Engagement Rings and Wedding Rings Become Two Separate Rings?

Historically, only one ring (the engagement ring) was given to the bride. In many traditions, she might change the hand she wore it on after marriage, but often it was simply the married woman who wore a ring.

In the Middle Ages, it became more common for couples to exchange rings as a sign of love and commitment to each other, with both men and women wearing a ring. For example, they might exchange one kind of ring during the engagement (a puzzle ring or a ring with a sentiment or commitment engraved in it) and then join the rings at the wedding ceremony, or a silver ring might be traded for a gold one.

When Did Women Start Wearing Diamond Wedding Rings?

Women’s engagement and wedding rings were always made of precious metals and high in value because they signified commitment and were a form of insurance for a woman if her groom called off the marriage.

The idea of a precious metal ring has always indicated faithfulness and commitment, and gemstones were typical adornments, especially among the upper classes.

The diamond wedding ring became iconic over time, as the De Beers cartel marketed diamonds’ clarity, hardness, and durability as a symbol of enduring love and lifelong commitment. As a result, diamond wedding rings became part of American culture in the 1940s and 50s and remain so today.

When Did Men Start Wearing Wedding Rings?

Men did not start wearing wedding rings every day until relatively recently in history. For men engaged in manual labor, wearing a ring made of precious metal daily was considered impractical.

Only the upper classes regularly wore jewelry, including signet rings and other signs of rank and office. During WWI, some men wore rings to remember their wives and families at home.

Over time, these rings came to represent responsibility and commitment, and they became commonplace for men in the 1950s.

What Does a Wedding Ring Symbolize?

A wedding ring symbolizes many things to many people. Generally speaking, a diamond wedding ring has these meanings and symbolism:

First, Eternity

A ring shape has no beginning or end, so it symbolizes eternity.

Commitment

A wedding ring is made of precious metals, so its monetary value indicates commitment, investment, and the value you place on the relationship.

Engagement and wedding rings have been made of yellow gold or white gold since ancient times since gold symbolizes wealth, purity, radiance, and perfection.

Faithfulness

Diamonds have a special symbolism in wedding and engagement rings since they are the hardest and strongest gemstones but also exceptionally clear and bright. They symbolize pure, eternal, enduring love.

Pride

Wearing a wedding ring indicates that you are proud of your partner and relationship and want the world to know how deeply you love and are loved.

Related Questions

Why is the wedding band circular?

The wedding band is circular because it fits on a finger and symbolizes continuity and eternity.

Why do we give diamonds as engagement rings? Why not other types of stones?

We give diamonds as engagement rings because diamonds have been marketed specifically for engagements for decades.

While diamonds symbolize durability and purity, other stones may have symbolism that is just as important and meaningful to you. For example, rubies symbolize love and passion, while sapphires symbolize good fortune and wisdom.

How do you care for a wedding ring?

A: To care for an engagement or wedding ring, clean your wedding ring regularly with warm soapy water and a soft brush, gently removing surface dirt and grime.

Schedule a yearly appointment with a jeweler to have the ring deep cleaned and inspected, ensuring the prongs are tight and the ring remains in good condition. Consider leaving your ring home during risky activities like high-intensity sports or a day at the beach.

Conclusion

Diamond rings symbolize marriage because these traditions have evolved over millennia. Some of the symbolism of the marriage proposal and the wedding day is extremely old and deeply part of western culture. Some of these traditions are newer, learned from our parents and grandparents.

And some of it is smart marketing. Today, couples can choose the wedding ring traditions and types that are most important and meaningful for them and make their own traditions.