Within the Xionites, there seem to have been two main subgroups, which were known in the Iranian languages by names such as "Karmir Xyon" and "Spet Xyon". The prefixes "karmir" ("red") and "speta" ("white") likely refer to Central Asian traditions in which particular colours symbolised the cardinal points. The "Karmir Xyon" were known in European sources as the "Kermichiones" or "Red Huns", and some scholars have identified them with the Kidarites and/or Alchon. The "Spet Xyon" or "White Huns" appear to have been the known in India by the cognate name "Sveta-huna", and are often identified, controversially, with the Hephtalites.