Rivello (Rëviell in the rivellese dialect[4]) is a town and comune in the province of Potenza, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata.

The comune extends for 68 square km, bordering Casaletto Spartano and Lagonegro to the north, Nemoli to the east, Maratea and Trecchina to the south, and Sapri to the west.

However, many archaeological finds suggest that Rivello is the successor to a Lucanian city of Sirios, predating the pre-Roman period.

It is well-known that starting from the Middle ages, the city was divided into two-quarters: the upper quarter, whose inhabitants, the bardàv'ti, were tied to the Latin rite church (San Nicola di Bari), and the lower quarter, whose inhabitants, the bardàsci, were followers of the Greek rite parish (Santa Maria del Poggio).

Another possible etymological origin of the name is found in the formation of the iterative type "Re + Vallare," meaning to fortify again, from which a late Latin revallo might have led, through the vowel shift A>E, to the form Rivello.