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Richard Lloyd of Vanderbilt University discusses Neo-Bohemia

According to answers.com, the term bohemian was first used in the nineteenth century to describe the non-traditional lifestyles of marginalized and impoverished artists, writers, musicians, and actors in major European cities. The bohemian lifestyle is often associated with cafés, coffeehouses, drug use (particularly, alcoholism, and absinthe. Bohemians were associated with unorthodox or antiestablishment political or social viewpoints, which were expressed through extramarital sexual relations and voluntary poverty.

The term emerged in France in the 1800s when artists and creators began to concentrate in the lower-rent, lower class gypsy neighborhoods. The term "Bohemian" reflects a belief, widely held in France at the time, that the Gypsies had come from Bohemia.

For the Nashville Scene’s review of Lloyd’s book, please visit http://www.nashvillescene.com/Stories/Arts/Books/2005/12/22/La_Vie_Neo_Boheme/index.shtml#