Nuclear rings located within the central 1-2 kiloparsecs of barred spiral galaxies are often found to contain a large fraction of the total star formation taking place in a galaxy. Under the influence of a bar, gas can be channelled inwards along narrow ridges where shocks develop in the gas flow. We observe these shocks as dark dustlanes along the length of the bar. Most of what is known about the dynamical origin and evolution of these rings stems from detailed numerical modelling, confirmed on the observational side mainly from the gas kinematics. Two-dimensional kinematics of the stars from actual observations are mostly lacking, but are needed to provide essential constraints on the theoretical models. In addition, detailed spectroscopic studies of the stellar populations in the rings are rare, but needed to confirm the detailed mechanism leading from inflowing gas to star formation.