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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nA Claddagh ring is both an Irish traditional engagement\/wedding\nring and a cultural symbol. The way you put it on was a customary definition of\nyour relationship status. Despite its new purpose to display one’s Irish\nheritage, many natives still follow the ensuing rituals: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
- If you are willing to start a romance but\nhaven\u2019t found your Prince\/Princess Charming yet, wear the circular piece of\njewellery on the right ring finger. The signal to attract singles comes from\nthe heart facing out (rather than in).<\/li>
- The heart facing in means that you are engaged\nin an affair but that there is no official recognition of your status. Even\nthough you are madly in love, men and women might still try their luck. <\/li>
- When the question is finally popped\n(congrats!), it is time to switch hand! The heart facing out implies your\nbetroth. An excellent technique to restrain most flirting approaches (most).<\/li>
- When\nin, you are happily married, and no one can replace your better half. You reject\nany form of flirtation.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
When worn as the emblem of Ireland, there is no\nparticular finger to have the ring on; even a chain will do the trick. Some\neven use the ring as a charm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
20 Interesting Facts:<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
#1 \u2018Mani\nin Fede\u2019<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Claddagh\nRings belong to the family of Fede<\/em>\nRings and, comes from the Italian \u2018mani\nin fede<\/em>,\u2019 translated as \u2018hands in faith.\u2019 The object illustrates two intertwined\nhands that symbolise either love, companionship or proof of troth. Dating back\nto the Roman Empire, its popularity reached its peak beyond borders, in the 12th<\/sup>\ncentury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#2 Roman or Irish?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The traditional Claddagh band, F\u00e1inne Chladaigh<\/em>, is an Irish version of its predecessor. Its roots\nremain the same, but the design evolved as it adjoins both a heart surmounted\nby a crown top. Those additions, primarily appended nearby the village of\nCladdagh in the 17th<\/sup> century (Galway), respectively stand for love\nand allegiance. The hands, emblem of friendship, don\u2019t clasp anymore and both\nconverge toward the heart instead. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ancient Egypt was the first to use rings as an emblem\nof union, but Ancient Rome marketing actions made the symbolism more popular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#3 The \u201cHeart and Hands Ring\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Fun fact: The only people not calling the jewel the\nCladdagh Ring are the inhabitants of Claddagh. They call it \u201cthe heart and\nhands ring\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#4 The legend of Margaret Joyce<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A legend lies behind the ring. Margaret Joyce, the new\nwife of Galway Mayor Oliver Ogffrench, built bridges all over Connaught with\nthe money she inherited from the decease of her previous husband, a wealthy\nSpanish merchant. One day, while sitting outside, she received a heaven-sent\ngift for her generosity. An eagle flying above her released the earliest\nCladdagh ring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#5 The Tale of the King and the Peasant<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Another myth narrates that a king fell madly in love\nwith a woman of a much lower rank, a peasant working nearby. Unauthorised to\nofficialise his passion, he did not see any purpose in living any longer. He\ncould not bear seeing the one he loved without being able to approach her, so\nhe took away his own life. Before going to the other world, he arranged a\nunique set up to show the greatness of his love: he had his hands wrapping his\ncrowned heart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
#6 The folklore behind Richard Joyce<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Records of goldsmith Bartholomew Fallon and silversmith\nRichard Joyce also appear historically. Truth is: no one knows who was at the\norigin of the creation of the Irish Ring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Captured by Algerian pirates when he left Galway in\nthe mid-17th century to discover the New World, Richard Joyce was sold to a\nMoorish jeweller. The latter instructed him how to manipulate the gold and the\ntalented Richard successfully created multiple pieces of adornment (including\nthe Claddagh Ring). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He was liberated after 14 years of detention, when William\nII of England asked Algerians to set free any enslaved British subjects. The\nslave\u2019s master offered both his daughter and half of his fortune for the Irish\nto stay, but he refused and went back to his hometown. When he got married, he\ngranted his wife-to-be with the masterpiece he created when captured. His\nwedding unveiled his handiwork to the world; the success of the design had just\nstarted. The Claddagh Ring was born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#7 The Claddagh Ring Song<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Many\nsingers honour the Claddagh ring! Holy Kirby tells the story of Richard Joyce\nwith her enchanting voice and the acclaimed \u2018Ould Claddagh Ring Song\u2019<\/em> by the accordionist Dermot O’Brien sings as\nbelow:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe old Claddagh ring<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sure it was my grandmother’s<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
She wore it a lifetime and gave it to me <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
All through the long years, she wore it so\nproudly<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was made where the Claddagh Rolls down\nto the sea<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
With a\ncrown and a crest to remind us of honour <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
And\nclasping the heart <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
That God’s\nblessing would bring <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
A circle\nof gold always kept us contented <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
With true\nlove entwined in the old Claddagh ring<\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Andy M. Stewart, Hugo Duncan, Shawn Cuddy alongside many\nothers also serenaded the ring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
#8 What\u2019s the Fenian Claddagh Ring?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Fenian Claddagh Ring is an unpopular variant,\nwhich presents without the crown. Some theories state that it was born in\nDublin in the 19th<\/sup> century as a mean to express the eagerness of\nfreedom from the British rulers. Others that its creation dates from years\nbefore the famous Claddagh band. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
#9 As an Heirloom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
When transmitted as a legacy, the mother tells her\ndaughter “With these hands, I give you my heart, and I crown it with my\nlove.\u201d When leaving to America, the emigrants (both sexes) would receive this\nfamily heritage their day of departure. The latter was one of the reasons the\nring acquired such identity importance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#10 Can you buy yourself a Claddagh Ring?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Claddagh Ring should not be a personal purchase. If\nyou bestow one upon yourself and wear it, consider it bad luck! Legends say it\nshould be either a gift (from a lover, a friend or kin member) or a family\nlegacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Creation or true belief? Many people (Irish included) keep\nbuying themselves the ring nowadays. Superstitious spirits can comfort\nthemselves with t-shirts, keychains, handbags (etc.) representing the Irish\ngem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
#11 Do you have to be Irish to own a Claddagh Ring?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
You don\u2019t have to be French to eat baguette or Maori\nto get Ta Moko tattoos, well the same applies for the ring. Love, loyalty and\nfriendship are universal principles. If its meanings genuinely speak to you, you\ndon\u2019t have to be Irish to own, wear or purchase it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#12 Did you say, Jim Morrison? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
For his Celtic inspired wedding, the rock star from \u2018The\nDoors\u2019 bought himself, and his wife Claddagh rings. His was gold and hers,\nsilver. A Celtic handfasting ceremony (see the end of the article) concretised\ntheir union on Summer solstice day, the 21st of June; an important date of the\nPagan calendar. In his movie \u2018The Doors,\u2019 Oliver Stone depicts the singer\u2019s wedding\nin an authentic, yet theatrical, cinematographic adaption. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other celebrities such as Sienna Miller, Liam\nGallagher, Mia Faro, Bono and John Wayne have been proudly seen with the band\non. <\/p>\n\n\n\n