Purity rings (also known as promise rings, abstinence rings, or chastity rings) are worn as a sign of chastity. The practice originated in the United States in the 1990s among Christian-affiliated sexual abstinence groups. Wearing a purity ring is typically accompanied by a religious vow to practice abstinence until marriage. Chastity rings are part of the abstinence-only sex education movement. Those who wear or promote these rings argue that the only method for safe sex is abstinence.