Would someone mind checking my translation of -だか and a contrastive は?


If anyone is willing, I'd like to check my reading of the following sentence:

ところが夜だかは、ほんとうは鷹の兄弟でも親類でもありませんでした。

"However, for a number of nights, there is a lie that [he] is a family member
or even a brother of the hawk, but it is not so."

I'm reading **夜だか** as "a number of nights" (e.g. for a while), but I'm
wondering if a better reading of -だか in this context would be "all" as in "all
nights" or "nightly".

Also, I read **ほんとうは** as "in contrast to the truth" e.g. a lie. Was that
correct?  
**EDIT: I found a good link explaining why this reading (as explained in the
answers) is wrong. Apparently, multiple は "topics" can be grammatically
correct.** [Can we have two thematic は particles in a
sentence?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/5375/can-we-have-two-
thematic-%E3%81%AF-particles-in-a-sentence)

* * *

**On a side note,**  
These kind of translation questions feel a bit out of place on Stack
Exchange... since this site seems to focus more on specific grammar and word
usage.

As I continue to read, I'd like to do more regular translation checks. Could
anyone recommend a forum where that might be more welcome (if not here)?




夜だか would be 夜鷹, the nighthawk.

本当 means 'truth. 本当は would be 'the truth is'. In this case, it would be 'in
contrast to what may be assumed/believed.

> ところが夜だかは、ほんとうは鷹の兄弟でも親類でもありませんでした。

As it is, the nighthawk is, in truth, neither a sibling nor a relative of the
hawk.




夜だか would be 夜鷹, the nighthawk.

本当 means 'truth. 本当は would be 'the truth is'. In this case, it would be 'in
contrast to what may be assumed/believed.

> ところが夜だかは、ほんとうは鷹の兄弟でも親類でもありませんでした。

As it is, the nighthawk is, in truth, neither a sibling nor a relative of the
hawk.

