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 2026-09-08T13:05:14Z in 0.233 seconds.

total:

1105366

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
38827b281a6a2fad4ca3d409c1b0d061
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011033003040
title:
Johs. Rian : tema med variasjoner
creators:
5 results
1. Hurum, Vibeke
2. Rian, Johs
3. Museet for samtidskunst (Norge)
4. Næss, Jan Chr
5. Johs. Rian - tema med variasjoner (utstilling)
year:
2002
publisher:
Museet for samtidskunst
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
3 results
1. eng
2. nob
3. mul
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_digibok_2011033003040_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/38827b281a6a2fad4ca3d409c1b0d061
id:
ffc570cc5daadd3e66eebfa76fc80ab3
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008090304016
title:
Fra forundringspakker til moderne logistikk
creators:
1 results
1. Johs. Olsen AS
year:
1998
publisher:
[Johs. Olsen]
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_2008090304016_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/ffc570cc5daadd3e66eebfa76fc80ab3
id:
e2017d441b5cea2f074f83c340b63dfb
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2017081648107
title:
Slekta Leth-Olsen
creators:
1 results
1. Leth-Olsen, Sturla
year:
1996
publisher:
S. Leth-Olsen : Distribusjon: Nordenfjeldske bok
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_2017081648107_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e2017d441b5cea2f074f83c340b63dfb
id:
02e3885e2764b00d6b5ae3316a9f0aea
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2020043048515
title:
Rolvsnesbåten : soga om Johs. Østensen båtbyggeri
creators:
1 results
1. Nilsen, Sindre
year:
2018
publisher:
Bømlobok.no
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_2020043048515_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/02e3885e2764b00d6b5ae3316a9f0aea
id:
b9bcb39f763503c9c4361fe04fae5f36
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021111248537
title:
Olsen gruppen : dyktige kara, store kast
creators:
1 results
1. Olsen, Anette K.
year:
2019
publisher:
Olsen Gruppen
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_digibok_2021111248537_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b9bcb39f763503c9c4361fe04fae5f36
id:
38705508ab4af3d05263405bc5754672
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008072204079
title:
Frimureriet i Gjøvik 1927-1996 : St. Johs. logen Den hvite svane 1976-1996, Gjøvik deputasjonsloge under St. Johs. logen St. Halvard 1962-1976, Gjøvik St. Johannes frimurer broderforening 1927-1962
creators:
2 results
1. Bugge-Jenssen, Nils
2. Frimurerne St. Johs. logen Den hvite svane Gjøvik
year:
1996
publisher:
[Logen]
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_2008072204079_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/38705508ab4af3d05263405bc5754672
id:
1b4a730313b6d247859edf667376de01
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2014062048009
title:
Olsen & Ugelstad 1915-1965
creators:
2 results
1. Haraldsen, Rolf B.
2. Olsen & Ugelstad
year:
1965
publisher:
Grøndahl
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_2014062048009_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/1b4a730313b6d247859edf667376de01
id:
007d4d648404c3fb9c238c0dcadd2db3
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2017082248084
title:
Skipsfører og seilmaker : Ole Olsens efterkommere
creators:
3 results
1. Olsen, Hroar
2. Olsen, Anna Hedvig
3. Olsen, Hjalmar
year:
1943
publisher:
(Cammermeyers Bogh.)
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_2017082248084_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/007d4d648404c3fb9c238c0dcadd2db3
id:
2596b9f6047d0bcd853442657e18f4a5
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2022081948565
title:
Albert, Konstanse og Alma Olsen og deres aner og etterkommere
creators:
1 results
1. Hegge, Grethe
year:
2017
publisher:
Grethe Hegge
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_digibok_2022081948565_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2596b9f6047d0bcd853442657e18f4a5
id:
701103499d227eae1b32b25c65832db4
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016062048156
title:
Til Sparre Olsen på 50-års dagen
creators:
1 results
1. Jonsson, Tor
year:
1953
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_2016062048156_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/701103499d227eae1b32b25c65832db4

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.