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 2026-09-26T21:55:48Z in 0.228 seconds.

total:

177072

page:

size:

items:

10 results

id:
5e886e835902aad2cdc0a1e3d24682ad
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2015091706028
title:
Lage web-sider for dummies
creators:
3 results
1. Smith, Bud
2. Bebak, Arthur
3. Stamsø, May Britt
year:
2000
publisher:
IDG Norge Books
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_2015091706028_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/5e886e835902aad2cdc0a1e3d24682ad
id:
957a37597cf15762d862921ca722519b
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016081208208
title:
Redigering for web
creators:
1 results
1. Furu, Nina
year:
2004
publisher:
IJ-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_2016081208208_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/957a37597cf15762d862921ca722519b
id:
ef84b170583bf1d81caf2167af647686
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2008112601023
title:
Redigering for web
creators:
1 results
1. Furu, Nina
year:
2001
publisher:
IJ-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_2008112601023_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/ef84b170583bf1d81caf2167af647686
id:
54ecb283fca7fe9241173404e54ffc43
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2016061508087
title:
Video works : international video art March 22 - April 21, 2002 : Annika Larsson ...
creators:
1 results
1. Video works (utstilling)
year:
2002
publisher:
Kunstnernes hus
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2016061508087_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/54ecb283fca7fe9241173404e54ffc43
id:
2e1a46e2aa526745973444765af21566
urn:
not reported by source
title:
Interfaced film : video-clix as a tool for interaction design on videos in a web-based learning application on ultrasound physics : a practical-theoretical approach to web-based video production
creators:
1 results
1. Bordvik, Hans Otto
year:
2003
publisher:
H. O. Bordvik
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
county:
not reported by source
digital:
no
public_domain:
no
license:
copyrighted
viewability:
NONE
access_allowed_from:
NB
thumbnail:
not reported by source
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2e1a46e2aa526745973444765af21566
id:
2108ef438d9a5d2b1bd41460f5608503
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2009121604014
title:
World Wide Web as a coordination technology for knowledge work
creators:
1 results
1. Elvekrok, Dag Runar
year:
1995
publisher:
PAKT, Program on Applied Coordination Technology, University of Trondheim
media_types:
1 results
1. bøker
languages:
1 results
1. eng
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_2009121604014_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/2108ef438d9a5d2b1bd41460f5608503
id:
0977d7a6bf6f1d49fc23b38a1806dc6f
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2012103008146
title:
IKT : grunnleggende web-design
creators:
3 results
1. Richards, A.A.
2. Faarlund, Thorbjørn
3. Løvstad, Borge
year:
2002
publisher:
NKS 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_2012103008146_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/0977d7a6bf6f1d49fc23b38a1806dc6f
id:
f9f1c9a78478d8a5299dce250515c561
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025052680053_001
title:
Audio video & hjemmekino. 1994 Nr. 2
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1994
publisher:
Nordisk fagpresse
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_2025052680053_001_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/f9f1c9a78478d8a5299dce250515c561
id:
46773fa9b8180491fd7e54cbbc6015fe
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2025052680053_002
title:
Audio video & hjemmekino. 1994 Nr. 3
creators:
not reported by source
year:
1994
publisher:
Nordisk fagpresse
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_2025052680053_002_0001/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/46773fa9b8180491fd7e54cbbc6015fe
id:
9aece526415e5b6662a422064ec1f83e
urn:
URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2022011148013
title:
NSD - Norsk senter for forskningsdata AS 50 år
creators:
2 results
1. Alvheim, Atle
2. NSD - Norsk senter for forskningsdata
year:
2021
publisher:
NSD
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_2022011148013_C1/full/0,128/0/native.jpg
viewer_url:
https://www.nb.no/items/9aece526415e5b6662a422064ec1f83e

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.