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 2026-09-24T17:13:04Z in 0.234 seconds.

total:

87323

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
5c0117979c94b03c91681e556f4b61dd
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022062480061_002
title:
Bygg- og tømmermesteren : organ for Norges bygg- og tømmermestre. 1920 Vol. 4 Nr. 1-12
creators:
1 results
1. Bygg- og tømrermestrenes landssammenslutning
year:
1920
publisher:
Bygg- og tømrermestrenes landssammenslutning
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. nob
county:
not reported by source
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
ccbyncnd
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022062480061_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5c0117979c94b03c91681e556f4b61dd
id:
7f6693060b98c42ec892c43588728971
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2012032238004
title:
- vi bygger videre : 1898-1973
creators:
1 results
1. Jacob Neumann AS
year:
1973
publisher:
[Jacob Neumann A/S]
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_2012032238004_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/7f6693060b98c42ec892c43588728971
id:
e181062eec603bf021863da4e5b2c413
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380064_003
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2004 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2004
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2026022380064_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e181062eec603bf021863da4e5b2c413
id:
7dacafcea991d20ff38c3d36410292f6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380063_003
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2005 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2005
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2026022380063_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/7dacafcea991d20ff38c3d36410292f6
id:
6fd9ea4fb787fa7edd876688eb1643e9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380064_008
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2004 Nr. 8
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2004
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2026022380064_008_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6fd9ea4fb787fa7edd876688eb1643e9
id:
0d10f27d7638b70cbbb72cdb26b83ac2
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380063_004
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2005 Nr. 4
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2005
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2026022380063_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/0d10f27d7638b70cbbb72cdb26b83ac2
id:
b9eba1b118da1d05bd3fbdfcc4b82715
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024061480018_003
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2007 Nr. 3
creators:
1 results
1. Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
year:
2007
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2024061480018_003_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b9eba1b118da1d05bd3fbdfcc4b82715
id:
9922000fbb33cbb7b74b0ee61188757c
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025061683068_001
title:
Bo bygg og bolig. 2008 Vol. 18
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2008
publisher:
Fagmedia
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_2025061683068_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9922000fbb33cbb7b74b0ee61188757c
id:
12c30f445ecdd8cd804474bb87f13bd2
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025061683069_001
title:
Bo bygg og bolig. 2007 Nr. 1
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2007
publisher:
Fagmedia
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_2025061683069_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/12c30f445ecdd8cd804474bb87f13bd2
id:
a8c98386aac65f2e6a0ff67a1e8585ca
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2026022380062_004
title:
Bygg & tre : medlemsorgan for TBF. 2006 Nr. 4
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2006
publisher:
Trelast- og byggevarehandelens fellesorganisasjon
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_2026022380062_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/a8c98386aac65f2e6a0ff67a1e8585ca

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.