Possibly ultimately from Gothic𐌼𐌿𐌻𐌳𐌰(mulda, “dust, mud”); compare the river Mulde in Germany and Moldau, the German name of the river Vltava, which may be of related origin. A folk etymology, according to Dimitrie Cantemir, derives it from the name of the Moldova River, which was supposedly named by Prince Dragoș after his hound, Molda, who drowned in it while attempting to hunt an aurochs. Other attempts have been made to link it to molid(“spruce”), but the phonetic transition seems uncertain. The suffix -ova seems to be of Slavic origin.