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.

ParameterRequirementJSON typeDescription
qrequiredstringFree-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.
media_typeoptionalunionRestrict 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.
languageoptionalunionLanguage 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.
countyoptionalunionNorwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".
year_fromoptionalunionRestrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
year_tooptionalunionRestrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
digital_onlyoptionalbooleanOnly items that have been digitized.
sortoptionalunionOne of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).
pageoptionalintegerZero-based page index.
sizeoptionalintegerResults per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).
limitoptionalintegerGateway page size; default 25, maximum 100.
offsetoptionalintegerNumber 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.

Type: string. Free-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.
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.
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.
Type: string. Norwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".
Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
Type: yes/no. Only items that have been digitized.
Type: string. One of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).
Type: integer. Zero-based page index.
Type: integer. Results per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).

Result

Source: National Library of Norway. Retrieved 2026-10-02T19:54:35Z in 0.541 seconds.

total:
40652
page:
0
size:
10
items:

10 results

  1. id:
    1aea9cdc37874f82d2d89141c45f3324
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Applied medical geography
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Pyle, Gerald F.
    year:
    1979
    publisher:
    V. H. Winston
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/1aea9cdc37874f82d2d89141c45f3324
  2. id:
    40f1cb21d5daf577e163abeb4d3b5c29
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Applied medical library practice
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Keys, Thomas E.
    year:
    1958
    publisher:
    not reported by source
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/40f1cb21d5daf577e163abeb4d3b5c29
  3. id:
    aee6c71255533c522c25387db71df3f2
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Applied medical bibliography for students
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Postell, William Dosite
    year:
    1955
    publisher:
    Charles C. Thomas
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/aee6c71255533c522c25387db71df3f2
  4. id:
    60b7c058fd9bb514052bc73b7a90e83d
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Artificial intelligence applied to medical genetics
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Braaten, Øivind
    2. Universitetet i Oslo Det medisinske fakultet
    year:
    2011
    publisher:
    Universitetet i Oslo, Det medisinske fakultet
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/60b7c058fd9bb514052bc73b7a90e83d
  5. id:
    1988c091dd88a61b6438dbf4caeab757
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Artificial intelligence applied to medical genetics
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Braaten, Øivind
    year:
    2011
    publisher:
    Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/1988c091dd88a61b6438dbf4caeab757
  6. id:
    392995b29dc11ef5074f16e14a4e7e24
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009020504077
    title:
    Working in Norway : information to medical doctors from EEA-countries
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Arbeidsdirektoratet
    2. Medical placement project
    year:
    1997
    publisher:
    The Directorate of Labour
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    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_2009020504077_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/392995b29dc11ef5074f16e14a4e7e24
  7. id:
    85a6cc55c80a5eb79de7de2509be4502
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2007110704019
    title:
    Applied telemedicine
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Televerkets forskningsinstitutt
    year:
    1992
    publisher:
    Norwegian Telecom Research
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    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_2007110704019_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/85a6cc55c80a5eb79de7de2509be4502
  8. id:
    51968635e856d130004f303706a1a5bc
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008081504091
    title:
    Proceedings of the Conference on Human Rights, Medical Ethics and Medical Conduct : Ohrid, 23-24 May 1997
    creators:

    4 results

    1. Conference on Human Rights, Medical Ethics and Medical Conduct 1997 Ohrid
    2. Den Norske lægeforening
    3. World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
    4. World Health Organization
    year:
    1998
    publisher:
    Norwegian Medical Association
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    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_2008081504091_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/51968635e856d130004f303706a1a5bc
  9. id:
    e5327ea0c5fe6218dd8b6bc018e7654b
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011011008010
    title:
    22nd World Congress of Medical Technology, 23-28 June 1996, Oslo, Norway : book of abstracts
    creators:

    2 results

    1. World Congress of Medical Technology
    2. Norsk bioingeniørforbund
    year:
    1996
    publisher:
    Norsk bioingeniørforbund - NOBI
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    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_2011011008010_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/e5327ea0c5fe6218dd8b6bc018e7654b
  10. id:
    5f38d38d5db172be02b516b14f39bfc2
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    The diffusion of medical innovations : an applied network analysis
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Fennell, Mary L.
    2. Warnecke, Richard B
    year:
    1988
    publisher:
    Plenum Press
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. eng
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    NONE
    access_allowed_from:
    NB
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/5f38d38d5db172be02b516b14f39bfc2
limit:
25
offset:
0
returned:
10
has_more_results:
yes
truncated:
yes
next_offset:
10
Will you use the result in generated code?

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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

  1. Replace the placeholders in the HTML GET template; remove optional parameters you do not need.
  2. Check types, units, limits and ID formats in the parameter table.
  3. 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.