The polydesmoid family Haplodesmidae Cook, 1895 is reviewed and shown to be a senior subjective synonym of the family Doratodesmidae Cook, 1896, syn. n. The Haplodesmidae therefore encompasses six genera and 30 recognizable species, all keyed here, including the following six new species: Eutrichodesmus basalis sp. n. and E. armatocaudatus sp. n. from Vietnam; E. communicans sp. n. from Vanuatu, Melanesia; and E. latus sp. n., E. similis sp. n. and E. incisus sp. n. from China. The following new synonymies are proposed: Prosopodesmus Silvestri, 1910 = Rhipidopeltis Miyosi, 1958; Doratodesmus Cook in Cook & Collins, 1895 = Pauroplus Chamberlin, 1945, = Eucondylodesmus Miyosi, 1956, = Scolopopyge Hoffman, 1978, = Selminarchus Hoffman, 1978, = Crenatidorsus Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993; Eutrichodesmus Silvestri, 1910 = Dimorphodesmus Murakami, 1966, = Ascetophacus Hoffman, 1977, = Cerastelachys Hoffman, 1977, = Dyomerothrix Hoffman, 1982, = Parapauroplus Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993, = Pocillidorsus Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993 (all syn. n.). The following new combinations are proposed: Prosopodesmus sinuatus (Miyosi, 1958), Doratodesmus elegans (Miyosi, 1956), Doratodesmus grandifoliatus (Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993), Doratodesmus analdes (Chamberlin, 1945), Doratodesmus pholeter (Hoffman, 1978), Doratodesmus hispidus (Hoffman, 1978), Eutrichodesmus macclurei (Hoffman, 1977), Eutrichodesmus reclinatus (Hoffman, 1977), Eutrichodesmus cavernicola (Sinclair, 1901), Eutrichodesmus peculiaris (Murakami, 1966), Eutrichodesmus gremialis (Hoffman, 1982), Eutrichodesmus monodentus (Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993), Eutrichodesmus dorsiangulatus (Zhang in Zhang & Wang, 1993) (all n. comb.).