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 2026-09-24T17:12:57Z in 0.212 seconds.

total:

27195

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
7e82a0c0b53810567f93385b0678d4de
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010101208005
title:
Bygdebok for Holm sokn. 2
creators:
2 results
1. Solemdal, Arnold
2. Bygdeboknemnda for Holm sokn
year:
1999
publisher:
Bygdeboknemnda
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_2010101208005_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/7e82a0c0b53810567f93385b0678d4de
id:
c7ed534bee2206b0909f8e958db70f91
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2026061248010
title:
Sør-Odal bygdebok. Bind 1B : Bosetting og slekter gnr. 5-7 i Strøm sokn
creators:
2 results
1. Kirkeby, Birger
2. Olsberg, Bjørn Ivar
year:
2018
publisher:
Sør-Odal kommunale bygdebokutvalg
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_2026061248010_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/c7ed534bee2206b0909f8e958db70f91
id:
22b1876b98af3e600beea1182ad4abfa
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009021104015
title:
Gamalt frå gard og grend : forteljingar frå Oppheim sokn
creators:
1 results
1. Lunde, Albert
year:
2000
publisher:
A. Lunde/Liv Ingeborg [i.e.Ingebjørg] 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_2009021104015_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/22b1876b98af3e600beea1182ad4abfa
id:
6d40c1d4ceefbedea82fd7c605e3869e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2022090283008_001
title:
Kyrkjeblad for Kviteseid, Vrådal, Brunkeberg og Fjågesund og Kilen sokn. 2022 Vol. 57 Nr. 2
creators:
1 results
1. Kyrkjekontoret i Kviteseid
year:
2022
publisher:
Kyrkjekontoret i Kviteseid
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
3 results
1. nno
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_digitidsskrift_2022090283008_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6d40c1d4ceefbedea82fd7c605e3869e
id:
4dab971942b938bfe93cb71b01c888eb
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2007092600022
title:
Gards- og ættesoge for Luster kommune. B. 4 : Gaupne sokn
creators:
2 results
1. Øyane, Lars E. (Lars Erik)
2. Luster
year:
1991
publisher:
Luster kommune
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
county:
Vestland
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_2007092600022_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/4dab971942b938bfe93cb71b01c888eb
id:
a00a77b1ffe22c339d46ccf3bf877f8f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2013022238184
title:
Lærdal bygdebok. 3 : Heim og ætt Tønjum og Hauge sokn : Grøto - Hunderi
creators:
4 results
1. Espe, Alfred
2. Gram, Ola
3. Lærdal
4. Hovland, Kåre
year:
1994
publisher:
Lærdal kommune
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. nno
county:
Vestland
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_2013022238184_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/a00a77b1ffe22c339d46ccf3bf877f8f
id:
5ef4536bd38387584a42f65e0e51244b
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2018010829005
title:
Sør-Odal bygdebok. 1-5 5. 1-5 5 : Gards- og slektshistorie for Strøm sokn
creators:
2 results
1. Kirkeby, Birger
2. Sør-Odal
year:
1987
publisher:
Kommunen
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_2018010829005_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5ef4536bd38387584a42f65e0e51244b
id:
c424d4ba719f59a32e9fea020fcd9ede
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024092683008_001
title:
Kirketorget (Slemmestad) : menighetsblad for Røyken, Åros, Slemmestad og Nærsnes menighet. 2024 Nr. 1
creators:
2 results
1. Røyken kirkekontor
2. Røyken menighetsråd
year:
2024
publisher:
Menighetsrådet i Røyken sokn
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_2024092683008_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/c424d4ba719f59a32e9fea020fcd9ede
id:
96b206d170bcf19c796c801116c1c7dd
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2014071580005_018
title:
Luthersk kirketidende (trykt utg.). 2001 Vol. 136 Nr. 18
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2001
publisher:
MF vitenskapelig høyskole
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
languages:
3 results
1. nob
2. mul
3. nno
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_2014071580005_018_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/96b206d170bcf19c796c801116c1c7dd
id:
328aff8433c1108d7232f171e85a5661
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_norsklysingsblad_null_null_19490920_67_218_1
title:
Norsk Lysingsblad
creators:
not reported by source
year:
19490920
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Oslo
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
LIBRARY
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_norsklysingsblad_null_null_19490920_67_218_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/328aff8433c1108d7232f171e85a5661

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.