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 2026-09-25T08:21:16Z in 0.186 seconds.

total:

486008

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
e168903f7508b76b64420187073b90a1
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2017100348197
title:
Brødr. Aarsæther A/S, 1877-1977
creators:
3 results
1. Vollan, Odd
2. Heli, Hans
3. Aarsæther A/S
year:
1977
publisher:
[Brødr. Aarsæther]
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_2017100348197_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e168903f7508b76b64420187073b90a1
id:
ca4ed771b81c90f9d6d1d25e02de8d9b
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010120906048
title:
Klart for opptak : glimt fra 60 års filmhistorie : Norsk film A/S 1932-1992
creators:
2 results
1. Nistad, Einar
2. Norsk film A/S
year:
1993
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_2010120906048_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/ca4ed771b81c90f9d6d1d25e02de8d9b
id:
64afcf9c748dfd15c2864fa019f064e4
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2025111048110
title:
Fabrikken og bygda : A/S Eidsfjord Møbelfabrikk
creators:
2 results
1. Ness, Kåre
2. Studio Nordhordland
year:
2025
publisher:
Studio Nordhordland
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
county:
Hordaland
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_2025111048110_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/64afcf9c748dfd15c2864fa019f064e4
id:
f83898282c83d1ea543069523c8b7b8f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2013010706028
title:
Resipientundersøkelse for Møksterlaks A/S og Langøylaks A/S, Austevoll kommune
creators:
3 results
1. Botnen, Helge B.
2. Johannessen, Per
3. Tvedten, Øyvind
year:
1991
publisher:
Universitetet i Bergen, Institutt for fiskeri- og marinbiologi
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_2013010706028_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f83898282c83d1ea543069523c8b7b8f
id:
fb7fdc14fc72e695fdde6e207943ea81
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2020032683159_001
title:
Nye bonytt : norsk spesialblad for hus, hjem og boliginnredning. 1974 Vol. 34 Nr. 3
creators:
1 results
1. Bonytt A/S
year:
1974
publisher:
Bonytt A/S
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_2020032683159_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/fb7fdc14fc72e695fdde6e207943ea81
id:
0e69aab6f46e48d18a2b9ccf0d0ae233
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021052748514
title:
A/S National industri 50 år
creators:
2 results
1. Kristensen, Fred
2. National industri, AS
year:
1967
publisher:
A/S National industri
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_2021052748514_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/0e69aab6f46e48d18a2b9ccf0d0ae233
id:
b6a739bc021e01420198bbea8f174cb9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2021092380007_001
title:
Nye bonytt : norsk spesialblad for hus, hjem og boliginnredning. 1968 Vol. 28 Nr. 10
creators:
1 results
1. Bonytt A/S
year:
1968
publisher:
Bonytt A/S
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_2021092380007_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b6a739bc021e01420198bbea8f174cb9
id:
816cb23e5cd954ffd7b7dc77e4fdd4e7
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016030148116
title:
Fra glasskår til isolasjon : 50 år : 1935-1985
creators:
2 results
1. Glassvatt, A/S
2. Glava isolasjon
year:
1985
publisher:
A/S Glassvatt ; [Oslo] : Glava isolasjon
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_2016030148116_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/816cb23e5cd954ffd7b7dc77e4fdd4e7
id:
b0833c52de4af7b4fc17e5853803c95f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2023082248037
title:
Sofies verden : basert på Jostein Gaarders roman
creators:
1 results
1. Sirkus A/S
year:
1999
publisher:
Sirkus
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_2023082248037_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b0833c52de4af7b4fc17e5853803c95f
id:
b347cbbc5c39bdaf2089fd313cd27bd9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2020021481002_001
title:
Nye bonytt. 1969 Vol. 29 Nr. 1
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1969
publisher:
Bonytt
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_2020021481002_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b347cbbc5c39bdaf2089fd313cd27bd9

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.