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 2026-09-30T00:38:44Z in 0.207 seconds.

total:

19743

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
8f8b82d3dc47878708a269622588ec2e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380056_007
title:
Best of Scandinavian news design. 2016
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2016
publisher:
Society for News Design Scandinavia
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
6 results
1. eng
2. dan
3. nob
4. swe
5. mul
6. fin
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_2026022380056_007_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/8f8b82d3dc47878708a269622588ec2e
id:
52587afd03e970901ef6259d87a4bed6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010050506131
title:
Report on cryopreservation of fish eggs and sperm
creators:
1 results
1. Piironen, Jorma
year:
1993
publisher:
Nordic Council of Ministers
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2010050506131_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/52587afd03e970901ef6259d87a4bed6
id:
bf66c5d52c23f8bfe3c7709096efd0d1
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022070480057_004
title:
Design (Oslo : 1997). 1998 Nr. 4
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1998
publisher:
Designscandinavia
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_2022070480057_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/bf66c5d52c23f8bfe3c7709096efd0d1
id:
d4d27df85d424a6ac621581e432baf43
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011042708090
title:
Art & design 2
creators:
2 results
1. Austad, Marcie Madden
2. Peel, Richard
year:
2002
publisher:
Cappelen
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
4 results
1. eng
2. nob
3. mul
4. nno
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_2011042708090_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/d4d27df85d424a6ac621581e432baf43
id:
98410b8fb8ffd97e873cf336766478d9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2015070908006
title:
Teaching of marin[e] design : what should be included? how should it be done? what is a suitable syllabus? : report from a workshop in Trondheim (NTH-Marin), May 3-6, 1993
creators:
2 results
1. Erichsen, Stian
2. Workshop on Teaching Marine Design
year:
1993
publisher:
[s.n.]
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_2015070908006_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/98410b8fb8ffd97e873cf336766478d9
id:
71c7cadecbef84fa47e4fa89db10575f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2024022748076
title:
Structures in the stream : fishways as design interventions in grey ecologies
creators:
3 results
1. Graesse, Malin Kristine
2. Universitetet i Oslo Institutt for filosofi, idé- og kunsthistorie og klassiske språk
3. Universitetet i Oslo Det humanistiske fakultet
year:
2022
publisher:
Department of Philosophy, Classics, History of Art and Ideas, University of Oslo
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2024022748076_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/71c7cadecbef84fa47e4fa89db10575f
id:
466b3005b5ca1c63fdb483adf2adea8d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2017012348127
title:
Gel-incubation of fish eggs and larvae
creators:
3 results
1. Jørgensen, Leif
2. Grasdalen, Hans
3. Erikson, Ulf
year:
1991
publisher:
SINTEF, Applied Chemistry
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_2017012348127_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/466b3005b5ca1c63fdb483adf2adea8d
id:
8a80f7cd3a59a39207cba20bbccafc9f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011071408069
title:
Design og håndverk = : Design og handverk
creators:
3 results
1. Rugset, Audun
2. Coleman, Nancy L.
3. Ulven, Eva
year:
2007
publisher:
Aschehoug
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
4 results
1. nno
2. eng
3. nob
4. mul
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_2011071408069_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/8a80f7cd3a59a39207cba20bbccafc9f
id:
829d0e8608d1f832d72f292b34709fe7
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_pliktmonografi_000001090
title:
Design av organisasjon
creators:
3 results
1. Blindheim, Bjørn-Tore
2. Klemsdal, Lars
3. Røvik, Kjell Arne
year:
2021
publisher:
Universitetsforlaget
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_000001090_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/829d0e8608d1f832d72f292b34709fe7
id:
6d26c70cdfdf886ffdcef65ee144cadd
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2026070806094
title:
Informing design for sustainable behaviour
creators:
1 results
1. Daae, Johannes Ludvig Zachrisson
year:
2014
publisher:
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Engineering Science and Technology, Department of Product Design
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2026070806094_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6d26c70cdfdf886ffdcef65ee144cadd

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.