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.

ParameterRequirementJSON typeDescription
qrequiredstringFree-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.
media_typeoptionalunionRestrict 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.
languageoptionalunionLanguage 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.
countyoptionalunionNorwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".
year_fromoptionalunionRestrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
year_tooptionalunionRestrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
digital_onlyoptionalbooleanOnly items that have been digitized.
sortoptionalunionOne of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).
pageoptionalintegerZero-based page index.
sizeoptionalintegerResults per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).
limitoptionalintegerGateway page size; default 25, maximum 100.
offsetoptionalintegerNumber 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.

Type: string. Free-text query. Supports field-restricted terms too, e.g. "subject:fiske year:1970" combined with free text.
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.
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.
Type: string. Norwegian county name, e.g. "Troms", "Oslo".
Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
Type: integer. Restrict to items published/issued in this year range (inclusive).
Type: yes/no. Only items that have been digitized.
Type: string. One of date, title, otherid, firstDigitalContentTime, optionally suffixed ",desc" (default: relevance).
Type: integer. Zero-based page index.
Type: integer. Results per page, 1 to 100 (default 10).

Result

Source: National Library of Norway. Retrieved 2026-09-24T23:48:14Z in 0.194 seconds.

total:
306280
page:
0
size:
10
items:

10 results

  1. id:
    8716d304c1cfd78da771a1cd33de7603
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Odalstidende : informasjonsavis for Nord-Odal kommune, Sør-Odal kommune og Odal sparebank
    creators:

    3 results

    1. Nord-Odal
    2. Sør-Odal
    3. Odal Sparebank
    year:
    not reported by source
    publisher:
    Nygård pressetjeneste
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. tidsskrift
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nob
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/8716d304c1cfd78da771a1cd33de7603
  2. id:
    f59639d7beb71fe19c6a3ae2d85d3a10
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Nord-Odal bygdebok
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Kirkeby, Birger
    2. Nord-Odal Kommune
    year:
    19690101
    publisher:
    Nord-Odal kommune
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nor
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/f59639d7beb71fe19c6a3ae2d85d3a10
  3. id:
    b939c2714e76c5eb72ed7c53f8669383
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Nord-Odal bygdebok
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Kirkeby, Birger
    2. Nord-Odal Kommune
    year:
    not reported by source
    publisher:
    not reported by source
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nor
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/b939c2714e76c5eb72ed7c53f8669383
  4. id:
    1f3344a41830bd365a91ffc6dec503e7
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Saksenytt : en kommunal informasjonsavis for Nord-Odal kommune
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Nord-Odal
    year:
    19920101
    publisher:
    Nord-Odal kommune
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. tidsskrift
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nob
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/1f3344a41830bd365a91ffc6dec503e7
  5. id:
    191f28c5c29a283f6bf87fa7f4cce6ac
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016070748057
    title:
    Nord Odal kommuneskoger : 1902-2002
    creators:

    2 results

    1. Skogstad, Marius
    2. Nord Odal kommuneskoger
    year:
    2002
    publisher:
    Nord Odal kommuneskoger
    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_2016070748057_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/191f28c5c29a283f6bf87fa7f4cce6ac
  6. id:
    12d18a99f0396f020fed97e3c34a77ab
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Nord-Odal kommune : Industri : (Industritomter for industri og håndverk)
    creators:
    not reported by source
    year:
    19610101
    publisher:
    not reported by source
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nor
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/12d18a99f0396f020fed97e3c34a77ab
  7. id:
    7a3d657aea3ad7e3192d052be7f161fb
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Nord-Odal kommune : Industri : (Industritomter for industri og håndverk)
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Nord-Odal Kommune
    year:
    19610101
    publisher:
    not reported by source
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nor
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/7a3d657aea3ad7e3192d052be7f161fb
  8. id:
    315954aff0779cdf144111b2eee6a322
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2007043004022
    title:
    Odalsboka : fellesbind for Nord- og Sør-Odal : bygdehistorie inntil 1819
    creators:

    3 results

    1. Kirkeby, Birger
    2. Nord-Odal
    3. Sør-Odal
    year:
    1966
    publisher:
    [Kommunene]
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nob
    county:
    Innlandet
    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_2007043004022_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/315954aff0779cdf144111b2eee6a322
  9. id:
    74c12f9499bcddd030fe5662d71fd3a1
    urn:
    URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016042109503
    title:
    Generalplanrapport 1982-94 Nord-Odal kommune : utfyllende bakgrunnsmateriale for generalplanen
    creators:

    1 results

    1. Nord-Odal
    year:
    1982
    publisher:
    [s.n.]
    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_2016042109503_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/74c12f9499bcddd030fe5662d71fd3a1
  10. id:
    0868689cc8b7fc79c998ba679a50f8ed
    urn:
    not reported by source
    title:
    Odalsboka : Fellesbind for Nord- og Sør-Odal : Bygdehistorie inntil 1819
    creators:

    3 results

    1. Kirkeby, Birger
    2. Sør-Odal
    3. Nord-Odal
    year:
    19660101
    publisher:
    not reported by source
    media_types:

    1 results

    1. bøker
    languages:

    1 results

    1. nor
    county:
    not reported by source
    digital:
    no
    public_domain:
    no
    license:
    copyrighted
    viewability:
    ALL
    access_allowed_from:
    EVERYWHERE
    thumbnail:
    not reported by source
    viewer_url:
    https://www.nb.no/items/0868689cc8b7fc79c998ba679a50f8ed
limit:
25
offset:
0
returned:
10
has_more_results:
yes
truncated:
yes
next_offset:
10
Will you use the result in generated code?

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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

  1. Replace the placeholders in the HTML GET template; remove optional parameters you do not need.
  2. Check types, units, limits and ID formats in the parameter table.
  3. 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.