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A Recognizable Symbol of Wedding Ring As a
Communication Object to Portray Marital Status
Nur Balqis Hakim Lokman Hakim and Hema Zulaika Hashim
Formgiving Design Research Group, Faculty of Art & Design, CoRE Design & Creativity
Universiti Teknologi MARA, 40450 Shah Alam, MALAYSIA
Abstract —The term ‘wedding ring’ is commonly used to
describe the rings given by either or both the bride and groom
during marital ceremony. The significance of wedding rings may
differ in accordance to the people’s culture, history, and religion.
Particularly among the Malays, there is no specific design or
characteristic of a ring to portray their marital status. Unlike
among the Westerns, wedding bands are most commonly used as
wedding rings, which have a diagnostic characteristic; matching
pair for both bride and groom and systematically used on the left
ring finger to indicate its significance to portray one’s marital
status. From this observation we can see that wedding rings have
been successfully recognized as a communication object to
portray one’s marital status within the western society. However,
it is not exclusive only to the western people. The idea of wedding
rings is common among the Christians of different races. In
Malaysia, we can see there is an arising acceptance of the idea of
wedding rings as a communication object to portray one’s
marital status. This happens through the assimilations of
wedding cultures among the multi- religious/racial society in
Malaysia. The openness of the Malays towards assimilation
however is limited by the socially acceptable margin of good and
bad. This research aims to discover the effectiveness of wedding
rings as a communication object to portray marital status in the
Malays society. The result will contribute in determining the
designs of wedding rings that will be in demand in the Malaysian
jewellery market, thus will enhance our local market by reaching
to the target market. The method of research will be descriptive
research and what to observe is the current Malay wedding
culture and also the effectiveness of wedding rings as a
communication object to portray one’s marital status. For this,
the researcher will conduct a survey to gather information from
the samples of target population.
Keywords— symbol, wedding rings, communication object,
marital status
I. INTRODUCTION
Design as concept - The design in this context refers to the
pattern or the physical look of a product, specifically a metal
product. Scoping down to jewellery, there is a lot common
designs, differed by culture and trends. For example, the norm
of wedding rings for the Malays traditionally is usually yellow
gold pattern-forged rings with floral or geometric motifs (Fig.
1.1). But for the Chinese, they would prefer white gold or
yellow gold of plain band (Fig. 1.2) design. In Malaysia, there
are several classes of jewelleries which are related with
marriage culture, and are different in each racial society;
Malay, Chinese, Indians, etc. It is also influenced by the
integration of different religion; Islam, Christianity, Hinduism,
Buddhism, and etc. This is because a marriage ceremony is a
significant event not only in the cultural values, but also
dominantly guided by the preaching of one’s religion. For
example, for the Christians, both the bride and groom will
exchange rings in the church after their oath. For the Indians,
they require a piece of necklace for the bride as a symbol of
marriage, traditionally.
The development in jewellery industry paved the way for
the more contemporary design and thus giving wide choices for
consumers to be creative with jewellery wearing, specifically
for wedding ceremonies which is strongly influenced by
culture and religion. The design of wedding rings used by a
certain society will reflect the concept of the rings. Circular
bands of gold or silver have no inherent meaning; they offer no
concrete reflection or detail [1]. Rather, they are highly abstract
and neutral in character, making it possible for the bond
between referent and symbol to retain its power in the face of
shifts and alterations [1].
Fig. 1. yellow gold pattern-forged ring
Fig. 2. yellow gold plain band ring
In Malaysia, wedding rings are available in various designs
ranging from the traditional to contemporary inspired. The
current market seems to be highly aspired in feeding the target
of multiracial society. In the western culture, the idea of
wedding rings is not just mere wedding gifts. They are a sign
of one’s marital status. In the Malays culture, it is more
common as a gift rather than a sign of one’s marital status. An
adorned ring finger on the left hand does not necessarily mean
married, and the concept of wedding bands as to portray one’s
marital status does not exist in the Malay society. However,
being in a multiracial country, the Malays are exposed to many
cultures and thus, the culture of wedding rings exchange
ceremony might have been assimilated with other cultures over
the years, resulting in a significant change of concept in
wedding ceremony. This research particularly focus on the
change of concept in the use of wedding rings, and whether it
is a recognizable communication object to portray one’s
marital status.
A. Creative Design
The design of wedding rings in the Malaysian market is a
current concern because the trend will change when the new
generation changes. This is closely related to the development
of culture. Wedding rings are an object of culture, and thus the
changes in its design will set a new direction. This is going to
continue in the future and this study will hypothetically
determine the direction of how wedding ring designs will
be.the process of designing a ring basically begins with the
choices of material. Though gold is the common material for
most wedding culture, but it is not suitable for the Malays
society specifically for the groom (gold ring for the bride is
acceptable) considering the rule of Islam which forbids men to
wear gold. As we can see, even at the first step of the designing
process, it is strongly influenced by the society’s cultural and
religious background. The process then develops to designing
the physical pattern of the ring. Plain gold band is already an
established wedding ring design in the western society, thus
making it a recognizable symbol of one’s marital status. To
design for the Malays, generally it depends on the individual to
go with traditional pattern forged- design, or a depiction of the
famous Malay motif bunga tanjung, or rather go abroad to a
contemporary style. There are no general rules when it comes
to wedding ring designs for the
Malays. The couple is free to choose in accordance to their
affordability and willingness (Fig. 3).
Fig. 3. The Process of Ring Design
II. THE SYSTEM OF USING WEDDING RINGS
The custom of ring giving may have evolved from the
practice of down-payment on the marriage agreement by the
groom which may be in terms of land, livestock, or other
valuables to the bride’s family [2]. This is very similar with
how the ring ceremony began in the Malay culture as well.
There are three stages in the evolution of the human marital
status as written by the institutional writes; (1) wife capture, (2)
purchase, and (3) mutual assent [3]. The family of the suitor
will send to the family of the chosen one a ring of gold, silver,
or copper according to its circumstances, an unmistakable sign
that the family begs the hand of the woman. This is a method
of purchase marriage epoch, and then the father of the bride
will decide the compensation and the condition of the wedding
as the essential preliminaries of the purchase marriage [4].
From this we can see the apparent system in the process of
marriage. The ring is one of the important elements in the
process. As stated above, the rings of different materials were
still perceived as an unmistakable sign of asking for the hand of
the woman in marriage, because it was used in accordance with
its circumstances. Thus, we can say that the material or design
may play an important role as a recognizable element of the
wedding rings to act as a communication object, but rather, the
circumstances in which the ring is used plays a bigger part as a
recognizable element. The circumstances in the Muslim Malay
marriage culture consist of three parts.
Commonly, the three main circumstances of using rings in
the context of wedding ceremony (Fig.2) are‘Merisik’,
engagement, and ‘Akad’. ‘Merisik’ is an initiation step of the
groom’s family to ask for a girl’s hand. The usual ring for this
event is a pattern-forged (‘belah rotan’) gold ring. Whilst for
the engagement, there’s no exact law or trend for the ring
designs. It depends on how much the groom-to-be would want
to spend on it. Both of these two rings are only given to the
bride and no exchange required.
The final one is the main wedding ring which is for the
‘Akad’. An ‘Akad’ is the ceremony of marriage itself, handing
over the bride as a wife to be the groom’s responsibility. Some
couples choose to exchange rings, but of no specific matching
band design. The ring given to the bride is actually as a gift.
Some don’t even give rings but a bracelet or a necklace. But in
the current trend, the matching set wedding ring designs have
set its place in the Malaysian market and seem to get positive
responds.
Fig. 4. Processes of wedding ceremony
A. Wedding Rings to Denote Marital Status
In the United States, engagement and wedding rings are
used to denote status, with the engagement ring seen as a
promise of marriage (Fig. 3.1) and a wedding ring worn to
indicate a formal (and usually legal) alliance with another
person [3] (Fig.3.2). This is a famous western culture that has
been adapted in most western society.
Fig. 5. solitaire ring
Fig. 6. Wedding bands
Based on this finding, we can see that wedding rings are not
just a mere gift from the groom to the bride and vice versa, it is
a symbol of eternity and commitment. The symbolism is
understood by the common perception of the society when if a
woman wears a (usually solitaire) ring on her left hand ring
finger, than it’s an engagement ring, and if a gold band is worn,
then it means she’s married. This is a culture which began in
the western society, but a tradition of great value for any other
societies to adapt to. Some women prefer to wear both
engagement and wedding ring together (Fig. 3.3). This proves
the existing system of using rings in marriage ceremony.
Fig. 7. Engagement ring and wedding ring worn together
B. Wedding Rings as Communication Object
Object communication extends beyond clothing to other
bodily adornments like the wedding rings or bind to indicate
marital status [5]. In this paper, object communications are
defined as objects that were worn or used by communicators
and served as something that were able to tell receivers about
that particular person. Attire is said to be the most common
form of communication object as an assessment of people’s
personality traits.
Having three stages discussed earlier; ‘merisik’,
engagement, and ‘akad’, the significance of a ring is dispersed
into these three purposes. Because of the two rings prior to the
‘akad’, some couples choose to get a bracelet or a necklace
instead for that main ceremony. In this context, the ring or
bracelet or necklace is considered as a part of the dowry or gift
from the groom to the bride. So this defeats the purpose of the
object as a communication object because with this culture, a
piece of jewellery can be anything, worn for any purposes.
If we consider how the Malay society, by nature they love
to adapt symbolism to their lives, for example; a‘keris’ as a
symbol of power and strength. Thus, they are more prone to
adapt the significance of wedding rings as a sign of one’s
marital status. This affect the design of wedding rings in the
current market to make it a symbol of marriage, universally
understood.
To imply that a ring is a wedding ring, and as a portrayal of
one’s marital status, the ring has to be in specific design or
worn in a specific way. For example like in the western culture,
a pair of wedding rings is designed as a plain gold band worn
on the ring finger on the left hand.
Wedding rings are to be perceived as an object that speaks
for itself. Meaning, without having to declare, a person may
portray the ring as his/ her marital statement.
III. DESIGN OUTCOMES
Wedding rings generally concerns the young generation of
the Malays aged 20 to 30. This is because at that range of age is
when people would most likely get married. Their choices of
designs will determine the significance of wedding rings.
These choices are the trend and in a long run, contribute to
developing a neo Malay culture. As the majority of consumer
in wedding rings, they have an important role to define the
significance of wedding ring designs in the Malaysian market.
This study will substantiate the Malay wedding tradition
that is currently upheld by in the society. The changes of
wedding cultures are beginning to arise and the context of
wedding ring designs is an important element in the changes.
The existing knowledge of the Malay wedding culture will be
revised with the evidence of new cultures in the current
generation.
The variables that will be measured are the age of the
population, which in this case is 20 to 30 years old, the
conservative Malay wedding tradition and the influences from
other cultures of wedding tradition assimilated in our society,
the traditional designs of wedding rings and the current designs
of wedding rings. The relationship of current wedding culture
in the Malay society with the current trends of wedding ring
designs is to be examined.
The culture of ring exchange is seen as a symbol of a
promise by both the bride and groom to spend their lives with
each other for eternity. The wedding ring is a sign of one’s
marital status, to show the society that this particular person is
no longer available. This idea which originated from the west
is not a negative culture, and in fact with a logical sentimental
purpose. There is no harm for the Malays to adapt this idea,
and the advertising and media agent have been a great
influence to instil that idea into our society.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Authors would like to acknowledge the Universiti
Teknologi MARA (UiTM) for the financial support under the
Excellent Fund Scheme. Authors also like to thank her
supervisor for advices and ideas in conducting this research
Research Management Institute, Universiti Teknologi
MARA (UiTM). Fully appreciations to Minister of Higher
Education Malaysia for the RAGS grant scheme and UiTM for
the financial support under Research Excellent Fund Scheme.
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