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 2026-09-25T13:58:03Z in 0.172 seconds.

total:

381859

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
25db5ea93cd7a58b152c24eac93a312f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009033104012
title:
Jonas : fremst på kaia i 100 år : Jonas Eriksen AS 1902-2002
creators:
2 results
1. Jensen, Anders
2. Jonas Eriksen AS
year:
2002
publisher:
[Jonas Eriksen AS]
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_2009033104012_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/25db5ea93cd7a58b152c24eac93a312f
id:
032efd4897159ee35a1d99c4ff21b29f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2018031948027
title:
A. Friestad AS : glimt fra historien om et handelshus : 1888-2013
creators:
2 results
1. Ramsland, Lars Martin
2. A. Friestad AS
year:
2013
publisher:
A. Friestad AS
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
Utlandet
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_2018031948027_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/032efd4897159ee35a1d99c4ff21b29f
id:
e22e1341fd1b2a01403bfe00c2777126
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2014070108107
title:
Kultur og kommers i 150 år : jubileumsskrift for G. Hagen AS 1855-2005
creators:
4 results
1. Nielsen, Camilla
2. Nielsen, Reidar
3. Westphal, Niels
4. G. Hagen AS
year:
2005
publisher:
[G. Hagen AS]
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_2014070108107_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e22e1341fd1b2a01403bfe00c2777126
id:
c0da6fc9fa2547abb40bd3d5fedab529
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021090348574
title:
Ole Moe AS : et allsidig engrosfirma på Sørlandet
creators:
1 results
1. Moe, Ole
year:
2021
publisher:
[Ole Moe]
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_2021090348574_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/c0da6fc9fa2547abb40bd3d5fedab529
id:
09d9d574f41036c6105a61d7d0b87695
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025112580046_001
title:
ABCompendiet : et informasjonsmagasin fra Arne B. Corneliussen AS. vår/sommer 2017 Nr. 1
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2017
publisher:
Arne B. Corneliussen AS
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_2025112580046_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/09d9d574f41036c6105a61d7d0b87695
id:
91593d8d8a70dba62633dc9dad0e6014
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025112580045_001
title:
ABCompendiet : et informasjonsmagasin fra Arne B. Corneliussen AS. vår/sommer 2018 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Arne B. Corneliussen AS
year:
2018
publisher:
Arne B. Corneliussen AS
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_2025112580045_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/91593d8d8a70dba62633dc9dad0e6014
id:
36a12723a2acab8f2475d43438305f3d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2022102448042
title:
AS kontorfunktionærenes forenings byggeselskap : et godt hjem i 100 år : 1922-2022
creators:
1 results
1. Christensen, Henrik Melgaard
year:
2022
publisher:
Mot forlag
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
Oslo
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_2022102448042_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/36a12723a2acab8f2475d43438305f3d
id:
2c7dd606a851899b96aaa268c54024b2
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021010607578
title:
Bil i sentrum i 100 år : norsk bil- og industrihistorie gjennom 100 år : Kolberg Caspary Lautom AS
creators:
2 results
1. Winding-Sørensen, Jon
2. Kolberg Caspary Lautom AS
year:
2007
publisher:
Kolberg Caspary Lautom 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_digibok_2021010607578_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2c7dd606a851899b96aaa268c54024b2
id:
1357f9043eee8d9605627e0ff82e46c5
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021060448662
title:
B.S. Aure AS : 150 år med handel i bygda
creators:
3 results
1. Høidal, Eldar
2. Tandstad, Kjetil
3. B.S. Aure A/S
year:
2020
publisher:
[B.S. Aure AS]
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_2021060448662_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/1357f9043eee8d9605627e0ff82e46c5
id:
97b3b7807b93193b5022dda6c8f94ada
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_pliktmonografi_000067413
title:
Fra Kapertokt til Kongens Klær : Oskar Pedersen AS 1925 - 2025
creators:
3 results
1. Løland-Andersen, Heidi
2. Buxrud Lyche, Irene
3. Pedersen, Tomm Oskar
year:
2025
publisher:
Oskar Pedersen 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_000067413_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/97b3b7807b93193b5022dda6c8f94ada

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.