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 2026-09-08T18:16:38Z in 0.188 seconds.

total:

223441

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
fb54f91612f797124e1f0712d1c0fcd6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780016_002
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1996 Vol. 11
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1996
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780016_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/fb54f91612f797124e1f0712d1c0fcd6
id:
66916aaf20135c6223f70c3a1e854a7e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780016_004
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1998 Vol. 13
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1998
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780016_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/66916aaf20135c6223f70c3a1e854a7e
id:
d8766b10550372a388515d7b5b230489
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780016_003
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1997 Vol. 12
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1997
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780016_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/d8766b10550372a388515d7b5b230489
id:
a4936a047e500021c0f87721e72e67a4
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022062980039_001
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1986 Vol. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1986
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2022062980039_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/a4936a047e500021c0f87721e72e67a4
id:
5bbca2081c90c30d21c974e417e7e8d1
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780016_005
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1999 Vol. 14
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1999
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780016_005_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5bbca2081c90c30d21c974e417e7e8d1
id:
fc57a156ed09342b7b15bed9c7727e6f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780016_001
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1995 Vol. 10
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1995
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780016_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/fc57a156ed09342b7b15bed9c7727e6f
id:
b131baae1e26ff5a16efcadd50b1520c
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780015_002
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1992 Vol. 7 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1992
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780015_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b131baae1e26ff5a16efcadd50b1520c
id:
028ae99d613ac11c00927285eb8f66f6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780015_001
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1991 Vol. 6 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1991
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780015_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/028ae99d613ac11c00927285eb8f66f6
id:
e3fa9d1d8fc4640b582352da0b69d04d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780015_003
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1993 Vol. 8 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1993
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780015_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e3fa9d1d8fc4640b582352da0b69d04d
id:
9f26f51c601d36e1f4db25e6fedf98e0
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023020780015_004
title:
Kvinesdal historielag. 1994 Vol. 9 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Kvinesdal historielag
year:
1994
publisher:
Kvinesdal historielag
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_2023020780015_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9f26f51c601d36e1f4db25e6fedf98e0

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.