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 2026-09-27T16:47:45Z in 0.263 seconds.

total:

42818

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
eb40d22031d53572fdf436e1db447c20
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010030903029
title:
Poetisk palett
creators:
1 results
1. Mathisen, Jens
year:
1999
publisher:
Orion
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_2010030903029_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/eb40d22031d53572fdf436e1db447c20
id:
a0051e61a804eb1d1295dc5b8be789cb
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2012070306006
title:
Vårherres palett : Lista
creators:
1 results
1. Espeland, Arne
year:
2008
publisher:
Klokkhammer forlag
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_2012070306006_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/a0051e61a804eb1d1295dc5b8be789cb
id:
9ae429248f74ab4c72a42b1dcb337068
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008080704014
title:
Mellom palett og preikestol
creators:
1 results
1. Dubland, Odd
year:
1998
publisher:
Lunde
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
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_2008080704014_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9ae429248f74ab4c72a42b1dcb337068
id:
5ea7953028c0a832ad897d480ecf7f55
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011031703029
title:
Olaf Isaachsen : med livet som palett
creators:
1 results
1. Furnes, Tone Klev
year:
2009
publisher:
Vigmostad & Bjørke
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_2011031703029_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5ea7953028c0a832ad897d480ecf7f55
id:
33b348807c7d751d38aa7c9da5e9ba84
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010032503031
title:
Akvarell : papiret som palett : en begynnerbok
creators:
2 results
1. Fredsøe, Ulla
2. Helgeland, Leif S.
year:
1997
publisher:
Orion
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_2010032503031_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/33b348807c7d751d38aa7c9da5e9ba84
id:
47b6a85040e851ceb230acb2fb4d500d
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009012104013
title:
Oluf Rasmussen AS, 100 år : 1902-2002
creators:
1 results
1. Oluf Rasmussen AS
year:
2002
publisher:
[Oluf Rasmussens forl.]
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_2009012104013_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/47b6a85040e851ceb230acb2fb4d500d
id:
c4d0f2ba7103b13b4c58dabc2b40460a
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016030248193
title:
Lysets fargespill : med kamera som pensel og naturen som palett = The play of light : with the camera as brush and nature as palette
creators:
2 results
1. Liene, Torstein
2. Munksgaard, Oddvar
year:
1994
publisher:
Høyskoleforl.
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
3 results
1. eng
2. nob
3. mul
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_2016030248193_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/c4d0f2ba7103b13b4c58dabc2b40460a
id:
2a4141c76f5719bb369d51c5336ff6ad
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010072903011
title:
Illusjonsmaling : trompe l'oeil : morsomt interiør med pensel og palett
creators:
2 results
1. Gordon-Smith, Roberta
2. Vinje, Karen Marie
year:
1998
publisher:
Bladkompaniet
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_2010072903011_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2a4141c76f5719bb369d51c5336ff6ad
id:
347b6ee6b4d4f1648593a9d2ff6aa9ed
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2025052607020
title:
Eline McGeorge : as spaces fold, companions meet
creators:
6 results
1. McGeorge, Eline
2. Hultman, Marianne
3. As Spaces Fold, Companions Meet (utstilling) Oslo 2016
4. Leithe H., Christina
5. Vik, Sunniva
6. Oslo kunstforening
year:
2020
publisher:
OK Book
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
3 results
1. eng
2. nob
3. mul
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_2025052607020_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/347b6ee6b4d4f1648593a9d2ff6aa9ed
id:
80d7661c357f607e84c08062d572c24e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_pliktmonografi_000017126
title:
As Far as my Eyes can Sea - the Expedition Exhibition
creators:
9 results
1. As Far as my Eyes can Sea - the Expedition Exhibition Arendal 2021
2. Nyaas, Tone Lyngstad
3. Skatvedt, Eli
4. Hareide, Dag
5. Scharnick, Janina
6. Sølberg, Stine
7. Aars, Emma
8. Aslaksen, Åse Kamilla Spjelkavik
9. Igland, Elin
year:
2021
publisher:
Bomuldsfabriken kunsthall
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_000017126_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/80d7661c357f607e84c08062d572c24e

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.