The historian and philosopher Tzvetan Todorov has died at the age of 77, his family have said.

The French writer of Bulgarian origin died following complications from a degenerative brain disease.

Born in 1939 in Sofia, he moved to France in the 1960s to escape communism. He wrote many books and essays, recently finishing one which is due to be published in March.

In his work “Facing the Extreme” on Nazi and Stalinist concentration camps, he concluded that morality did not completely evaporate and there were many cases of people helping others to survive.

His book Resisters in 2015 studies a range of historical figures who made sacrifices in a personal struggle over human rights, from Nelson Mandela to Edward Snowden.

Todorov was interviewed by euronews after winning the Prince of Asturias award in 2008.