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 2026-09-22T20:15:32Z in 0.217 seconds.

total:

189

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
ea17e480f702e8e7b2e9ce81c1685f7a
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026051283015_001
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2026 Nr. 1
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2026
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2026051283015_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/ea17e480f702e8e7b2e9ce81c1685f7a
id:
13e67298579c5ab27fb04be11a881f18
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024022880030_023
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2021 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Lyskultur
year:
2021
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2024022880030_023_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/13e67298579c5ab27fb04be11a881f18
id:
2e39d1b52d54bb8b88080a855034bd8a
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025072280046_002
title:
Elmagasinet (trykt utg.). 2011 Vol. 61 Nr. 2
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2011
publisher:
NELFO
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_2025072280046_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2e39d1b52d54bb8b88080a855034bd8a
id:
af99d77a34f34bd34f2e823cce8a0479
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025072280036_004
title:
Elmagasinet (trykt utg.). 2020 Vol. 71 Nr. 4
creators:
2 results
1. NELFOs elinform
2. NELFO
year:
2020
publisher:
NELFO
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_2025072280036_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/af99d77a34f34bd34f2e823cce8a0479
id:
f18e34d2db3e621f7bbf2377e58b34e8
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025060383159_001
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2025 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Lyskultur
year:
2025
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2025060383159_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f18e34d2db3e621f7bbf2377e58b34e8
id:
1c336162341bb78027458f9b397b5256
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024022880030_019
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2020 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Lyskultur
year:
2020
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2024022880030_019_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/1c336162341bb78027458f9b397b5256
id:
4a4c44448c8f0a812d7adbe82d7824b0
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025072280055_004
title:
Elmagasinet (trykt utg.). 2004 Vol. 56 Nr. 4
creators:
2 results
1. NELFOs elinform
2. NELFO
year:
2004
publisher:
NELFO
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_2025072280055_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/4a4c44448c8f0a812d7adbe82d7824b0
id:
d5db9e8d08206ed8d29dbb8655337d40
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025022183046_001
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2024 Nr. 4
creators:
1 results
1. Lyskultur
year:
2024
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2025022183046_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/d5db9e8d08206ed8d29dbb8655337d40
id:
6291e40733a5c1a5cb5cf03218671444
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023110683081_001
title:
Lyskultur (Lysaker) : magasinet for lys. 2023 Nr. 3
creators:
1 results
1. Lyskultur
year:
2023
publisher:
Lyskultur
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_2023110683081_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6291e40733a5c1a5cb5cf03218671444
id:
3fdc03ddd3e24362903e2b5cb08b3a12
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025072280055_001
title:
Elmagasinet (trykt utg.). 2004 Vol. 56 Nr. 1
creators:
2 results
1. NELFOs elinform
2. NELFO
year:
2004
publisher:
NELFO
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_2025072280055_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/3fdc03ddd3e24362903e2b5cb08b3a12

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.