Alphard (α Hya, α Hydrae, Alpha Hydrae) is the brightest star in the constellation Hydra. The name Alphard is from the Arabic الفرد (al-fard), "the solitary one", there being no other bright stars near it. It was also known as the "backbone of the Serpent" to the Arabs. In ancient China it formed part of an asterism called the "red bird". The European astronomer Tycho Brahe dubbed it Cor Hydræ, the heart of the snake.