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 2026-09-30T22:52:34Z in 0.252 seconds.

total:

6618

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
20536bffb5ebb0f7fffbcc9971d4f8b3
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2011070406103
title:
Norwegian defence & security
creators:
1 results
1. Samstag, Tony
year:
2007
publisher:
Horn forl.
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2011070406103_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/20536bffb5ebb0f7fffbcc9971d4f8b3
id:
ea5f6dcf6ce9525d5158f3ca4e313f8e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010113008050
title:
ICOM-statutes ; Code of professional ethics = : ICOMs museumsetiske regler
creators:
1 results
1. ICOM
year:
1991
publisher:
Norsk ICOM
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_2010113008050_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/ea5f6dcf6ce9525d5158f3ca4e313f8e
id:
4707a85052f810e2f0c05e199202a126
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023083180014_001
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 2001 Vol. 32 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
2001
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023083180014_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/4707a85052f810e2f0c05e199202a126
id:
9329855b162ac5666fc42f3bbac4f680
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024030880001_004
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 1993 Vol. 24 Nr. 4
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
1993
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2024030880001_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9329855b162ac5666fc42f3bbac4f680
id:
279726bdca13e76c1bfb67b5cf1b0dd2
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023083180012_004
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 1998 Vol. 29 Nr. 4
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
1998
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023083180012_004_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/279726bdca13e76c1bfb67b5cf1b0dd2
id:
f5e8824d9ef4ffb5531b3759b7dc1818
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023082980020_008
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 2003 Vol. 34 Nr. 4
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
2003
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023082980020_008_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f5e8824d9ef4ffb5531b3759b7dc1818
id:
388003299cc3baf7b13db1e630e15edd
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022100483132_001
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 2022 Vol. 53 Nr. 4
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
2022
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2022100483132_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/388003299cc3baf7b13db1e630e15edd
id:
48927cda1649b383b402e435b1b58799
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023082980019_001
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 2007 Vol. 38 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
2007
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023082980019_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/48927cda1649b383b402e435b1b58799
id:
3bb42cdc70c6afee47d47e6adfd2161c
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023083180011_005
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 1997 Vol. 28 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
1997
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023083180011_005_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/3bb42cdc70c6afee47d47e6adfd2161c
id:
bd7f34bbabb023e449880791fbf0c63e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2023083180010_001
title:
Security dialogue (trykt utg.). 1994 Vol. 25 Nr. 1
creators:
1 results
1. Institutt for fredsforskning
year:
1994
publisher:
Sage Publications
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2023083180010_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/bd7f34bbabb023e449880791fbf0c63e

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.