There is a dispute among Slavic scholars as to whether the Croats were of Irano-Alanic, West Slavic, or East Slavic origin. Some scholars linguistically and archaeologically also draw parallels between Croats and Slavs with the Carpi, who previously lived in the territory of Carpathian Mountains. Whether the early Croats were Slavs who had taken a name of Iranian origin, or whether they were ruled by a Sarmatian elite and were Slavicized Sarmatians, cannot be resolved, but is considered that they arrived as Slavic people when entered the Balkans. The possibility of Irano-Sarmatian elements among, or influences upon, early Croatian ethnogenesis cannot be entirely excluded. The dispute on affiliation with West and East Slavs is also disputed on linguistic grounds because the South Slavs are linguistically more closer to East Slavs.