Where does “Mollica” come from?

Mollica (English) comes from Italian mollica, from Vulgar Latin *mollīca, from Latin mollis, from Latin molduis, from Proto-Italic moldus, from Proto-Indo-European *ml̥dus, from Proto-Indo-European (s)meld- — to soften, to melt.

Ancestry of “Mollica”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italianmollicacrumb, breadcrumb (soft internal portion of bread)
2Vulgar Latin*mollīca—
3Latinmollissoft, delicate to the touch; pliant, flexible,...
4Latinmolduis—
5Proto-Italicmoldus—
6Proto-Indo-European*ml̥dussoft, weak
7Proto-Indo-European(s)meld-to soften, to melt
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)meld- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European *ml̥dus →Every word from Proto-Italic moldus →