search

Search the National Library's catalog - books, newspapers, journals, photos, maps, music, manuscripts, radio/TV and more, both physical and digitized. Digitized text (OCR) is matched too by default, so a query can surface newspaper or book pages that mention a term even when it's not in the title.

Signature: search(q: string, required; media_type: string, optional, default None; language: string, optional, default None; county: string, optional, default None; year_from: integer, optional, default None; year_to: integer, optional, default None; digital_only: yes/no, optional, default False; sort: string, optional, default None; page: integer, optional, default 0; size: integer, optional, default 10; limit: integer, items, optional, default 25; offset: integer, items, optional, default 0)

Direct GET

For navigating agents: open the HTML page with parameters in the URL. The result is fetched and displayed without screenshots or form filling.

Open this validated HTML GET URL

https://allemannsdata.com/wiki/kilder/nasjonalbiblioteket/search/?q={q}&media_type={media_type}&language={language}&county={county}&year_from={year_from}&year_to={year_to}&digital_only=false&sort={sort}&page=0&size=10&limit=25&offset=0

Replace {q}, {media_type}, {language}, {county}, {year_from}, {year_to}, {digital_only}, {sort}, {page}, {size} with values. Remove unused optional parameters from the URL.

For software and dashboards: Read the operation descriptor. The JSON GET template is https://allemannsdata.com/wiki/api/v1/kilder/nasjonalbiblioteket/search?q={q}&media_type={media_type}&language={language}&county={county}&year_from={year_from}&year_to={year_to}&digital_only=false&sort={sort}&page=0&size=10&limit=25&offset=0. Open this exact request as JSON.

Parameter	Requirement	JSON type	Description
`q`	required	string	Free-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.
`media_type`	optional	union	Restrict to one type, e.g. aviser (newspapers), bøker (books), tidsskrift (journals), bilder (photos), musikk, kart (maps), film, plakater (posters), noter (sheet music), radio, fjernsyn. See get_aggregations(q="*", group_by="mediatype") for the full list with counts.
`language`	optional	union	Language filter - values are inconsistent in the catalog (mixes codes like "nob" and labels like "Norsk bokmål"); check get_aggregations(q=q, group_by="languages") first if unsure.
`county`	optional	union	Norwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".
`year_from`	optional	union	Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
`year_to`	optional	union	Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
`digital_only`	optional	boolean	Only items that have been digitized.
`sort`	optional	union	One of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).
`page`	optional	integer	Zero-based page index.
`size`	optional	integer	Results per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).
`limit`	optional	integer	Gateway page size; default 25, maximum 100.
`offset`	optional	integer	Number of list items to skip; default 0.

Generated JavaScript, Python and response structure

Use JSON when the user requests code, machine-readable data, value extraction or further computation. Use the HTML GET page to identify the correct source and verify parameters.

Example for generated JavaScript and Python

https://allemannsdata.com/wiki/api/v1/kilder/nasjonalbiblioteket/search?q={q}&media_type={media_type}&language={language}&county={county}&year_from={year_from}&year_to={year_to}&digital_only=false&sort={sort}&page=0&size=10&limit=25&offset=0

Replace URL placeholders and remove unused optional parameters.

JavaScript in a dashboard

const url = "https://allemannsdata.com/wiki/api/v1/kilder/nasjonalbiblioteket/search?q={q}&media_type={media_type}&language={language}&county={county}&year_from={year_from}&year_to={year_to}&digital_only=false&sort={sort}&page=0&size=10&limit=25&offset=0";
const response = await fetch(url);
if (!response.ok) {
  const failure = await response.json();
  throw new Error(`${failure.error.code}: ${failure.error.message} ${failure.suggestion}`);
}
const result = await response.json();
const data = result.data;

Python without additional packages

import json
from urllib.request import urlopen

url = "https://allemannsdata.com/wiki/api/v1/kilder/nasjonalbiblioteket/search?q={q}&media_type={media_type}&language={language}&county={county}&year_from={year_from}&year_to={year_to}&digital_only=false&sort={sort}&page=0&size=10&limit=25&offset=0"
with urlopen(url) as response:
    result = json.load(response)
data = result["data"]

Response structure

{
  "source": "nasjonalbiblioteket",
  "operation": "search",
  "parameters": {},
  "data": {},
  "entities": [],
  "_meta": {"retrieved_at": "...", "sources": [], "cache": {}},
  "_links": {"self": "...", "source": "...", "wiki": "...", "feedback": "..."}
}

Form for manual use

The form is a fallback for people and browser agents that cannot open the GET URL directly.

q (required) Type: string. Free-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.

media_type Type: string. Restrict to one type, e.g. aviser (newspapers), bøker (books), tidsskrift (journals), bilder (photos), musikk, kart (maps), film, plakater (posters), noter (sheet music), radio, fjernsyn. See get_aggregations(q="*", group_by="mediatype") for the full list with counts.

language Type: string. Language filter - values are inconsistent in the catalog (mixes codes like "nob" and labels like "Norsk bokmål"); check get_aggregations(q=q, group_by="languages") first if unsure.

county Type: string. Norwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".

year_from Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).

year_to Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).

digital_only Type: yes/no. Only items that have been digitized.

sort Type: string. One of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).

page Type: integer. Zero-based page index.

size Type: integer. Results per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).

Result

Source: National Library of Norway. Retrieved 2026-09-25T19:00:03Z in 0.364 seconds.

total:

498

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
22952468e4f12a44f0d4d447626391bd
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010022303016
title:
"As time goes by" : festskrift i anledning Bjørn Sørenssens 50-årsdag
creators:
1 results
1. Sørenssen, Bjørn
year:
1996
publisher:
Tapir
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
6 results
1. eng
2. nob
3. mul
4. nno
5. dan
6. swe
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
bokhylla
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NORWAY
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010022303016_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/22952468e4f12a44f0d4d447626391bd
id:
4ea8b1c8e67c008600de7f487c9e2578
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20201105_15_43_1
title:
Vestby Avis (Vestby)
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20201105
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Akershus
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
LIBRARY
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20201105_15_43_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/4ea8b1c8e67c008600de7f487c9e2578
id:
5ddf7e252f13e8e1ccf235878198f3ce
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20171123_12_46_1
title:
Vestby Avis (Vestby)
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20171123
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Akershus
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
LIBRARY
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20171123_12_46_1-1_01_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5ddf7e252f13e8e1ccf235878198f3ce
id:
df33b69e26e4e3d08656eb1c22849841
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026042383058_001
title:
Næring (Arendal) : verdiskaping i sør. 2020 Nr. 4
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2020
publisher:
Nye Arendals Tidende AS
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026042383058_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/df33b69e26e4e3d08656eb1c22849841
id:
924f91d401a83ff1e9260a4a33c97828
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20220210_17_6_1
title:
Vestby Avis (Vestby)
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20220210
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Akershus
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
LIBRARY
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_vestbyavis_null_null_20220210_17_6_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/924f91d401a83ff1e9260a4a33c97828
id:
2df95bd506e3664f6ef979969c8dbcd0
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880033_008
title:
Sjekkposten. 2011 Nr. 2
creators:
2 results
1. FN-veteranenes landsforbund
2. Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
year:
2011
publisher:
Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880033_008_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2df95bd506e3664f6ef979969c8dbcd0
id:
4311b67d1ac7243cfb1acf9ea329e4ca
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880032_001
title:
Sjekkposten. 2012 Nr. 2
creators:
2 results
1. FN-veteranenes landsforbund
2. Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
year:
2012
publisher:
Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880032_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/4311b67d1ac7243cfb1acf9ea329e4ca
id:
9fc1b7cf91860aab7ee77cfe11a89817
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025092380006_017
title:
Natur & miljø (Oslo). 2013 Nr. 5
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2013
publisher:
Naturvernforbundet
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025092380006_017_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9fc1b7cf91860aab7ee77cfe11a89817
id:
d24357b34804195df9df9edb4e967430
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024090680007_003
title:
Sjekkposten. 2011 Nr. 3
creators:
2 results
1. FN-veteranenes landsforbund
2. Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
year:
2011
publisher:
Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024090680007_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/d24357b34804195df9df9edb4e967430
id:
3a90eeb0862d812d5434aa2587b37a73
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880032_002
title:
Sjekkposten. 2012 Nr. 3
creators:
2 results
1. FN-veteranenes landsforbund
2. Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
year:
2012
publisher:
Norges veteranforbund for internasjonale operasjoner
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061880032_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/3a90eeb0862d812d5434aa2587b37a73

limit:

offset:

returned:

has_more_results:

yes

truncated:

yes

next_offset:

Will you use the result in generated code?

Open the same result as JSON

Is data missing or incorrect? Send feedback about this result.

Continue exploring

How an AI agent should use this page

Ground rule: Navigate with HTML GET links to keep explanations and relationships. Use the page's JSON alternative only when concrete values must be extracted, compared or computed.

How to use the search lookup

Replace the placeholders in the HTML GET template; remove optional parameters you do not need.
Check types, units, limits and ID formats in the parameter table.
Follow linked results to canonical pages before combining sources.

Misreading to avoid: An empty list means "no results for this lookup". An error message or unavailable source does not mean the data does not exist.

Source-specific next step

Go to the source page for other operations. Use the JSON template only after the HTML result shows that the parameters and source are correct.

AI agent? Read the complete navigation and programming guide.