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 2026-09-24T17:04:40Z in 0.200 seconds.

total:

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
b3d5bfa96ba8c8f03a4983720ef565f1
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009112304011
title:
Informasjonsteknologi
creators:
1 results
1. Stöhlmacher, Nanne
year:
1997
publisher:
Yrkeslitteratur
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_2009112304011_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/b3d5bfa96ba8c8f03a4983720ef565f1
id:
a75215c9445b3feda350ce91625df389
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009112304013
title:
Informasjonsteknologi
creators:
1 results
1. Stöhlmacher, Nanne
year:
1997
publisher:
Yrkeslitteratur
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. 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_digibok_2009112304013_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/a75215c9445b3feda350ce91625df389
id:
e59a60f979d727285ea9508447ab78ed
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2014093008060
title:
Datamaskinteknik
creators:
1 results
1. Wallin, Sven-Erik
year:
1969
publisher:
Studentlitteratur
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_2014093008060_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/e59a60f979d727285ea9508447ab78ed
id:
5065922432e204105b789042841d48d3
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_hallingdolen_null_null_19770924_39_109_1
title:
Hallingdølen
creators:
not reported by source
year:
19770924
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Buskerud
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_digavis_hallingdolen_null_null_19770924_39_109_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5065922432e204105b789042841d48d3
id:
9b74cbb598197b7a3bfe384c590ac6f6
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025063080021_006
title:
Foreldre & barn (trykt utg.). Juni 2011 Nr. 6
creators:
not reported by source
year:
2011
publisher:
Story House Egmont
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_2025063080021_006_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9b74cbb598197b7a3bfe384c590ac6f6
id:
69cf3b6b62ea8c9677b034500b8d1a63
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2024022280039_002
title:
Norwegian : inflight magazine. 2010 Vol. 3
creators:
1 results
1. Norwegian Air Shuttle
year:
2010
publisher:
Norwegian Air Shuttle
media_types:
1 results
1. tidsskrift
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_digitidsskrift_2024022280039_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/69cf3b6b62ea8c9677b034500b8d1a63
id:
db4f120611be5a9c9e8afe4df698221e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_lindesnes_null_null_20021128_114_274_1
title:
Lindesnes
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20021128
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Agder
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_lindesnes_null_null_20021128_114_274_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/db4f120611be5a9c9e8afe4df698221e
id:
fdd35419d569e5852a3076c3d0f7ef9b
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_auraavis_null_null_20101028_62_164_1
title:
Aura Avis
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20101028
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Møre og Romsdal
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_auraavis_null_null_20101028_62_164_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/fdd35419d569e5852a3076c3d0f7ef9b
id:
6b28e344dc2abec7eabcfc914e219255
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_sarpsborgarbeiderblad_null_null_20060301_77_51_1
title:
Sarpsborg Arbeiderblad
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20060301
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Østfold
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_sarpsborgarbeiderblad_null_null_20060301_77_51_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/6b28e344dc2abec7eabcfc914e219255
id:
60d582fd246d9ac4edf020664ff8a7b9
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_karmsund_null_null_20080529_19_20_1
title:
Karmsund
creators:
not reported by source
year:
20080529
publisher:
not reported by source
media_types:
1 results
1. aviser
languages:
1 results
1. Norsk bokmål
county:
Rogaland
digital:
yes
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
ALL
access_allowed_from:
EVERYWHERE
thumbnail:
https://www.nb.no/services/image/resolver/URN:NBN:no-nb_digavis_karmsund_null_null_20080529_19_20_1-1_001_null/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/60d582fd246d9ac4edf020664ff8a7b9

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.