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 2026-09-28T08:58:33Z in 0.263 seconds.

total:

403501

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
f96e4a67f51844f69d9eabe9403ef3c8
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024053180037_004
title:
Trygg bane : sikkerhetsmagasinet for operativt personell i Bane NOR. 2019 4
creators:
1 results
1. Bane NOR
year:
2019
publisher:
Bane NOR
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_2024053180037_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f96e4a67f51844f69d9eabe9403ef3c8
id:
0c9e945bad29b6bbee85b58ab6dcf966
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025052183018_001
title:
Status (Bane NOR eiendom). 2018
creators:
1 results
1. Bane NOR eiendom
year:
2018
publisher:
Bane NOR eiendom
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_2025052183018_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/0c9e945bad29b6bbee85b58ab6dcf966
id:
49af910f36e80251645122fb6ad82162
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025060383177_001
title:
Status (Bane NOR eiendom). 2019
creators:
1 results
1. Bane NOR eiendom
year:
2019
publisher:
Bane NOR eiendom
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_2025060383177_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/49af910f36e80251645122fb6ad82162
id:
2c07bbe64f0b5c6793b25bafc68bd80f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_pliktmonografi_000042188
title:
Prosjekter 2024-2025 : Bane NOR Eiendom
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2024
publisher:
Bane NOR Eiendom AS
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
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_pliktmonografi_000042188_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2c07bbe64f0b5c6793b25bafc68bd80f
id:
06ef465818b7877ba7f4eb412ffd072e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_plikttidsskrift_9de6d313-847e-48ed-8f70-65a232952d17
title:
Network statement. 2025
creators:
1 results
1. Bane NOR
year:
2025
publisher:
Bane NOR
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_plikttidsskrift_9de6d313-847e-48ed-8f70-65a232952d17_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/06ef465818b7877ba7f4eb412ffd072e
id:
11391be2151b2d4bb5db0d75074e1629
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008100800013
title:
Sf : samlede fortellinger
creators:
1 results
1. Bringsværd, Tor Åge
year:
1999
publisher:
Gyldendal
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nob
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_2008100800013_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/11391be2151b2d4bb5db0d75074e1629
id:
b139ea3e4bd0f86d7d91df3865cd1f4f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2020030207073
title:
Senit : SF naturfag : vg1
creators:
2 results
1. Langdalen, Anne
2. Enström, Kent
year:
2013
publisher:
Gyldendal undervisning
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
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_digibok_2020030207073_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b139ea3e4bd0f86d7d91df3865cd1f4f
id:
75ea22eb1eeff2b012bfa99ff1e08961
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023090680054_002
title:
Nor (Christiania : 1839) : tidsskrift for Videnskab og Literatur. 1842 Vol. 2 Nr. 2
creators:
1 results
1. Det Norske studentersamfund
year:
1842
publisher:
A. D. Wulfsberg
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023090680054_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/75ea22eb1eeff2b012bfa99ff1e08961
id:
09d0e067737f0ddc15bead7e1ce44d94
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023042080012_002
title:
Nor (Christiania : 1839) : tidsskrift for Videnskab og Literatur. 1840 Vol. 1 Nr. 4
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1840
publisher:
A. D. Wulfsberg
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023042080012_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/09d0e067737f0ddc15bead7e1ce44d94
id:
63032a5c22d9966e196733dde37fb5f6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023042080012_001
title:
Nor (Christiania : 1839) : tidsskrift for Videnskab og Literatur. 1840 Vol. 1 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1840
publisher:
A. D. Wulfsberg
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023042080012_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/63032a5c22d9966e196733dde37fb5f6

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.