The species of the genus Acanthops Serville 1831 are revised. Seventeen valid species are recognized, and A. royi sp.n., A. centralis sp.n., A. occidentalis sp.n., A. onorei sp.n., A. elegans sp.n., and A. parafalcata sp.n. are described. The species A. contorta Gerstaecker, A. fuscifolia Olivier and A. erosa Serville previously treated as synonyms of A. falcataria (Goeze) are returned to species status; A. sinuata is treated as synonym for A. fuscifolia; A. amazonica is included in the genus Metilia. Keys to males and females are provided. A cladistic analysis, using 19 morphology characters, revealed the monophyly of the genus with two major clades, one containing falcata parafalcata royi centralis and the other containing the remaining species. Finally, a biogeographic analysis is made.