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 2026-09-23T08:59:33Z in 0.222 seconds.

total:

112

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
5ae87d9593fa9befce011535bf908bff
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2021030248840
title:
Håndbok for norske oftalmologer : 2006
creators:
4 results
1. Slettedal, Jon Klokk
2. Bakke, Espen
3. Norsk oftalmologisk forening
4. Bærland, Thomas Pedersen
year:
2006
publisher:
Norsk oftalmologisk forening
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_2021030248840_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5ae87d9593fa9befce011535bf908bff
id:
2472021d945c76ab558db044903a8c39
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_flekkefjordsbudstikke_null_null_18841220_10_98_1
title:
Flekkefjords budstikke
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18841220
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Agder
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_flekkefjordsbudstikke_null_null_18841220_10_98_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2472021d945c76ab558db044903a8c39
id:
e45c999cbea76e999dfef70c81634876
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_mosstilskuer_null_null_18451002_7_79_1
title:
Moss Tilskuer
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18451002
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Østfold
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_mosstilskuer_null_null_18451002_7_79_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e45c999cbea76e999dfef70c81634876
id:
f2e688303523d3f4af79baae8f48cd79
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_bergensadressecontoirsefterretninger_null_null_18490728_85_60_1
title:
Bergens Adressecontoirs Efterretninger
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18490728
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Vestland
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_bergensadressecontoirsefterretninger_null_null_18490728_85_60_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f2e688303523d3f4af79baae8f48cd79
id:
6af63a3f8d31045f29adb3d9c39738f5
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_tonsbergsblad_null_null_19590708_90_154_1
title:
Tønsbergs blad
creators:
not reported by source
year:
19590708
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Vestfold
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_digavis_tonsbergsblad_null_null_19590708_90_154_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6af63a3f8d31045f29adb3d9c39738f5
id:
64a951cdf9ccb64625d260a637d2382a
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_salten_null_null_19110211_2_6_1
title:
Salten
creators:
not reported by source
year:
19110211
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Nordland
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_digavis_salten_null_null_19110211_2_6_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/64a951cdf9ccb64625d260a637d2382a
id:
39099d5c565b0d2e1e2a73539959fb41
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_finmarkensamtstidendevadsoe_null_null_18950907_25_36_1
title:
Finmarkens Amtstidende (Vadsø: 1871-1944)
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18950907
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Finnmark
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_finmarkensamtstidendevadsoe_null_null_18950907_25_36_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/39099d5c565b0d2e1e2a73539959fb41
id:
e19c952f9d95e01255cfa62b3670991b
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_fjordenesblad_null_null_18870608_10_23_1
title:
Fjordenes Blad
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18870608
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Vestland
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_fjordenesblad_null_null_18870608_10_23_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e19c952f9d95e01255cfa62b3670991b
id:
85e9d9e37930620ec4bf614bebeee173
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_trondhjemsfolkeblad_null_null_19010502_16_51_1
title:
Trondhjems Folkeblad
creators:
not reported by source
year:
19010502
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Trøndelag
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_digavis_trondhjemsfolkeblad_null_null_19010502_16_51_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/85e9d9e37930620ec4bf614bebeee173
id:
bbc86faca009a274b81bdfdc33bb4858
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_sandefjordstidende_null_null_18861225_25_104_1
title:
Sandefjords Tidende
creators:
not reported by source
year:
18861225
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Vestfold
digital:
yes
public_domain:
yes
license:
publicdomain
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_sandefjordstidende_null_null_18861225_25_104_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/bbc86faca009a274b81bdfdc33bb4858

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.