An analytic solution of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for a rotating Bose-Einstein condensate of trapped atoms describes the onset of vorticity when the rotational speed is increased, starting with the entry of the first vortex and followed by the formation of growing symmetric Wigner molecules. It explains the staircase of angular momentum jumps and the behavior of the bosonic occupancies observed in numerical studies. The similarity of this behavior and mesoscopic superconductors is discussed.