Nenang, nino, nem n­ão, ni no

This article analyses the similarities and differences between four particles of negation in various Ibero-Asian creoles: nenang in Malacca’s Kristang, nem nun in 19th-century Sri Lanka Indo-Portuguese, nino in Ternate Chabacano, and ni no in Zamboanga Chabacano. It also includes a study of the Portuguese nem não and Spanish ni no constructions, which subsist in Iberian and American dialectal varieties, and are in this article taken as direct sources of the abovementioned creole constructions. Given that the meaning of Kristang nenang differs substantially from both the Portuguese construction proposed as the source and the other three creole particles, I analyse possible paths of semantic evolution which may have resulted in its particular characteristics.