The family Pentatomidae is the fourth most diverse among Heteroptera, comprising about 4.700 species divided in, approximately, 800 genera. The family is a monophyletic taxa characterized by the loss of gonapophyses 8, gonapophyses 9 reduced and fused to gonocoxites 9, gonangulum absent and the ductus receptaculi dilated and invaginated, forming three distinct walls. The subfamily Edessinae is the second most diverse, comprising about 320 species divided in nine genera: Edessa Fabricius, 1803 (about 300 species), Ascra Say, 1832 (14 species), Brachystethus Laporte, 1832 (10 species), Peromatus Amyot & Serville, 1843 (seven species), Olbia Stål, 1862 (three species), Pantochlora Stål, 1870 (one species), Doesburgedessa Fernandes, 2010 (five species), Paraedessa Silva & Fernandes, 2013 (nine species) and Grammedessa Correia & Fernandes, 2016 (12 species). The genus Edessa has many taxonomic and nomenclatural problems related to the lack of a reliable diagnosis. In this way, species which have general characteristics of the subfamily and did not fit in the diagnostic features of other genera of Edessinae are considered to belonging to Edessa. This practice made the genus a "deposit" of species with indefinite limits. The proposal for the genus is to revise Edessa in groups of species sharing morphological distinctive characters (possible synapomorphies). One of these enigmatic groups of Edessa is formed by Edessa celsa Distant, 1890 and three allied new species. Here we describe a new genus for these four species sharing a unique set of characteristics and compare with Hypoxys, subgenus of Edessa with similar facies. Diagnosis, illustrations of the metasternal process and external and internal genitalia, photographs of the dorsal and ventral view, and a distributional map are provided. A key to the genera belonging to Edessinae and a key to the species of Plagaedessa are also provided. Male and female genitalia of Plagaedessa celsa n. comb. are described for the first time. Distribution of P. celsa is extended to Costa Rica and Mexico. The lectotype of Edessa celsa is here designated.
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