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 2026-09-13T06:47:15Z in 0.250 seconds.

total:

105

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
128e5ad458602f7fa398d4fd5f4ae70f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2017112381306_001
title:
OM : magasinet om olje og gass i Midt-Norge. 2014 Vol. 10 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2014
publisher:
Tidens krav
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2017112381306_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/128e5ad458602f7fa398d4fd5f4ae70f
id:
5a025a1a066de92d1f05071a510ce500
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025062480101_002
title:
OM : magasinet om olje og gass i Midt-Norge. 2014 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2014
publisher:
Tidens krav
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_2025062480101_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5a025a1a066de92d1f05071a510ce500
id:
8ca097d91374dc911207a0f4e5e8bc39
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191130_177_279_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20191130
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191130_177_279_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/8ca097d91374dc911207a0f4e5e8bc39
id:
8efd828c3d00668eb9cf4415f12d1797
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024011883187_001
title:
Våre barn (Barnekreftforeningen : trykt utg.). 2023 Nr. 3
creators:
4 results
1. Landsforeningen mot kreft
2. Støtteforeningen for kreftsyke barn
3. Barnekreftforeningen
4. Den Norske kreftforening
year:
2023
publisher:
Barnekreftforeningen
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_2024011883187_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/8efd828c3d00668eb9cf4415f12d1797
id:
961161a3e0b50aaef74ddc9f9da118d9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20141008_172_232_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20141008
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20141008_172_232_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/961161a3e0b50aaef74ddc9f9da118d9
id:
538e1edd46246707b461c3d3720dd6cb
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191212_177_289_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20191212
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191212_177_289_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/538e1edd46246707b461c3d3720dd6cb
id:
b525da69d976cedd747ee19e1b04330d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20241017_182_203_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20241017
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20241017_182_203_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b525da69d976cedd747ee19e1b04330d
id:
f8bd9a12bf5f85fbfbfe293f0f315732
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20180418_176_87_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20180418
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20180418_176_87_1-01_001_seksjonsnavn/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f8bd9a12bf5f85fbfbfe293f0f315732
id:
5042aa05655dc410c9f6efc9a8c3d564
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20181114_176_263_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20181114
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20181114_176_263_1-01_001_seksjonsnavn/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5042aa05655dc410c9f6efc9a8c3d564
id:
0fd4ae6bb6eba9de5f637f1b5a176c6d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191002_177_228_1
title:
Romsdals Budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20191002
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_digavis_romsdalsbudstikke_null_null_20191002_177_228_1-1_001_hovedavis/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/0fd4ae6bb6eba9de5f637f1b5a176c6d

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.