Moldova declared independence on 27 August 1991, as part of the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The name Moldova came from the Moldova river. The origin of the name of the river remains unclear. According to a legend recounted by Moldavian chroniclers Dimitrie Cantemir and Grigore Ureche, Prince Dragoș named the river after hunting an aurochs. Following the chase, the prince's exhausted hound Molda drowned in the river. Moldova is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The capital city is Chișinău.
