diff --git a/python/pyhive/sqlalchemy_hive.py b/python/pyhive/sqlalchemy_hive.py
index 355f296daed..66f7d75cc20 100644
--- a/python/pyhive/sqlalchemy_hive.py
+++ b/python/pyhive/sqlalchemy_hive.py
@@ -421,6 +421,7 @@ def create_connect_args(self, url):
             "scheme": self.scheme,
             "username": url.username or None,
             "password": url.password or None,
+            "database": url.database or "default",
         }
         if url.query:
             kwargs.update(url.query)